


I AM Zangetsu

by MidnightMuse234



Category: Bleach
Genre: M/M, Zanpakuto Arc, hichiichi - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-28
Updated: 2018-09-29
Packaged: 2019-02-22 23:06:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 22
Words: 44,309
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13177122
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MidnightMuse234/pseuds/MidnightMuse234
Summary: Spoiler warning for the manga! This story starts with a few ideas I have about how White and Zangetsu became one. Then it picks up at the moment Hollow Ichigo was introduced in the Zanpakuto Arc. It also shows a bit of the Zanpakuto Arc from Shirosaki's perspective, and how the truth about him is revealed through the Zanpakuto arc. Ichigo learns that his Hollow's desire to 'devour' him was just the beginning and that there's much more to his truthfully over-protective Zanpakuto. And yes, it's HichiIchi





	1. The Hollow, The Zanpakuto, The Quincy

**Author's Note:**

> Uh, so yeah, this story I started a while ago and I'm keeping mostly the same as the version from FFN - so you'll likely see how my writing style changes throughout. I'm keeping the original beginning (even though I personally don't like it as the beginning to this story. It feels out of place, but it's also important to this story and I would never find another place to post it, so... Well, just ignore my rambling if I don't make sense). As always, thank you for reading!

The last thing I remember was hearing Ichigo scream. It scared me, to hear King in such soul-crushing pain. What could have caused him to cry out like that?

Then it all became clear. The chains around my body melted away, the darkness that was King's Shihakusho peeled off my clothing to reveal the pure white beneath. I sighed, watching my skin bleach back to white, my fingernails turn black, and my surroundings changing to... oh great, this place.

It wasn't King's inner world, at least, not his real one. This was the place I was forced to be by King. He didn't accept me as a part of himself, as a result I was forced into the corners of his mind where even he couldn't venture. He didn't want me around... I didn't blame him. It wasn't his fault that he hated me.

But how was I awake? The old man wouldn't have just let go of his hold on me for no reason. Now, either that scream meant Ichigo was wounded and I needed to fix him, or that whatever enemy he was facing was much stronger and he needed his full power now.

Either way, Ichigo was in danger, and I needed to get out of here to help my King.

My King. Very possessive of you, Zangetsu. Since when have I cared about Ichigo?

Let me start at the beginning... around the time Ichigo's mother died.

-=-=-

Ichigo's inner world was small at the time, only one building was in it. The world was underwater, Kurosaki Clinic being suffocated by the minute.

"Mommy? Mommy!?" The cries shook through the world.

White felt alive under Ichigo's sorrow, each tremor and sob he heard pulled him closer to the crying child. As he reached for the sun, two cold blades were placed at his throat.

"Not so fast, Hollow. I cannot allow you to hurt my Master."

The Hollow made a growling noise, echoed both naturally and by the wide open water.

The being behind him had blue eyes and grey hair, two pure black swords in black-gloved hands, and a sleeveless Shihakusho on skinny arms. "I know I'm fading away... But I WON'T allow you to hurt our young Master so long as I still draw breath."

White submitted to the Zanpakuto, for now...

Later, skyscrapers grew from the ground, pushing out White and Zangetsu from the water. Zangetsu grew stronger, feeling that Ichigo had summoned his Zanpakuto for the first time.

But it wasn't long until White was summoned by Ichigo too. Ichigo was in the middle of battling a Hollow when the world shifted. A crack appeared in the middle of the skyscrapers, a deadly crack. White could reach Ichigo's mind, making the boy twisted - if just for a second - he and Ichigo simultaneously reached through the Hollow's mask, yanking out its tongue...

He was pulled back when Ichigo's sanity cleared. Zangetsu pinned him to the wall, his eyes angry and glowing a violent blue.

White made a gargled sound, much like a sigh, and Zangetsu moved away. They waited in silence for their King's fight to end. White cooed at Ichigo's anger, his jealousy of forces that were stronger than him, and Zangetsu remained silent, waiting for the right time to reach his King and tell him his name.

So long as Zangetsu remained, White couldn't take control. And so long as White remained, Zangetsu was left with constant headaches.

One day the unthinkable happened. The world sunk yet again, this time a few more buildings present - Orihime's apartment, the bridge were Ichigo saved Chad, the streets where Ichigo and Uryu fought, and Masaki's grave. For days there was nothing but Ichigo's screams and sobbing. Zangetsu was weak, now that Rukia's given powers had been cut out by some "Captain Kuchiki", and White was unable to do anything since Ichigo hadn't any power at all that could be tainted.

"How pitiful."

White and Zangetsu turned, eyes wide at the face neither of them had seen before.

"Who're you!?" Zangetsu voiced the question on both of their minds.

"Me?" The man was much older than Zangetsu and White, displaying wisdom in his eyes, along with malice. "Well, I suppose my name would technically be "Ichigo", as that's who I live within."

White growled. Zangetsu pointed his left blade at the intruder. "You are not my Master, stranger. Who are you really?"

The man sighed, his cloak and dark brown hair flowing in the wind. "I am Juha."

White and Zangetsu glanced at each other (it was odd for them act alike), then back to Juha.

Juha sighed and stepped forward. "Regardless of who I am, the two of you are an infestation. Be gone. I will deal with giving the boy his powers back - if only because he'll get us all killed without them."

-=-=-

There was air, not water, but there was no sun. The skyscrapers had turned orange, and the sky was blood red with black clouds. Before there was a chance for White or Zangetsu to question their new location, they heard a cry. Turning, the could see the normal world through the glass of this fake one.

"Juha is... feeding lies to our Master!" Zangetsu cried desperately. His lips quivered when he felt White behind him, his growl angry and violent.

Zangetsu nodded, a tear rolling down his cheek. "Yes, White... I do believe it is time for that."


	2. A New Life

Zangetsu coughed. Not just your ordinary,  _oh I caught a cold_ cough. No. It was the kind of cough that tore open one's throat and left blood dripping from your lips.

Zangetsu was  _dying._

His eyes shut as a poisonous blue tongue caressed his cheek. "You sick Hollow… hasn't anyone ever taught you not to play with your food?"

It coed, and enjoyed the tortured look on Zangetsu's face. White rolled Zangetsu onto his back, watching as the life faded from the Zanpakuto's eyes. At the same time, yellow irises appeared behind White's mask.

* * *

Ichigo was running, the crazy shopkeeper close behind him. He ducked when a sword was sent his way, using his speed to slide past a large rock then dive behind it. Ichigo took the opportunity to catch his breath, knowing it wouldn't take Kisuke Urahara long before catching up.

"You are scared," he heard the voice of the Old Man in his mind.

Ichigo couldn't have agreed more. Kisuke was a terrifying opponent, so of course he was scared!

"Why is that? You should feel no fear when you have a magnificent power at your disposal." Ichigo stared at the ground questioningly. Where was this power the Old Man talked about? If it was so great, then why was it that Kisuke was able to beat him so easily? "Listen, Ichigo, you should be able to hear it now. My name…

"I don't hear anything…" Ichigo replied, exhausted and sick of all the mind games. He heard Kisuke approaching and started running again.

"Then remove fear, it is the obstacle that blocks your hearing!" The Old Man snapped. Ichigo suddenly froze, an enormous sense of pride filling his entire body. He gripped the hilt in his hand, attempting to spread his resolve towards the sword. "You are level with this opponent. You are one and he is one. What do you have to fear?"

It was all starting to make sense to Ichigo now.

"Retreat and you will age. Age makes you weak. Hesitate and you will die. Give your enemy no chance to strike you. My name is Zangetsu!"

* * *

A pale hand punched a hole through the window by Zangetsu's limp form. A bubbling mass of laughter escaped the skull-like mask, words escaping a mouth that hadn't spoken since its birth, "Look at him, Zangetsu! Look!"

Dying eyes moved to look a window higher, a ghostly image of Ichigo appearing. Ichigo swung his new Zanpakuto, an oversized butcher's knife, towards Kisuke, and immediately Zangetsu and White could feel the buzz of their powers being used.

White cackled, removed his bloodied hand from the window. He watched the attack go straight towards Kisuke. "Kill him, Ichigo! Kill him!"

It vanished as Ichigo fainted, his body instinctively clinging to his Zanpakuto for support. Zangetsu smiled, murmuring with the last of his strength, "Look at Master… he'll be alright… he'll be just fine…" The second he was done speaking, the Zanpakuto shattered into a mass of blue light. It hovered around White like glitter before surrounding him all at once.

As the glow began to fade, a new being fell to its knees. A being that looked like Ichigo, but was white, fell against the inverted skyscraper with a gentle thud. It was unconscious, a soft smirk playing on its lips much unlike Ichigo's scowl. Where it should have been red it was blue, and everything else remained colourless except for its eyes. Hidden beneath delicate eyelids were shining gold irises and ink black sclera, something taken from Ichigo's own nightmares.

How ironic that something so violent and impure would come to be recognized as Ichigo's instinct. Ichigo, a man who would sacrifice everything he is to protect every man and woman around him, had the heart of a killer and the soul of a Hollow. If Zanpakuto were truly meant to reflect their Masters, then is it Ichigo who is the deceiver, or perhaps is it Zangetsu?

The being woke, its peculiar eyes flickering about the strange new world. It felt pain, but knew it was wrong, however the reason why escaped its memory altogether. It touched the cold surface of the orange building, looking into the black glass and staring at Ichigo as though he were a complete stranger. It whispered one word, "King…"

Soon after it became horrified, his beloved King's body was being horribly torn apart by another man with bright red hair. The being recognized the other man as an enemy immediately, and took to focusing what little power it had on protecting King.

He cried in shock as Ichigo was knocked down, jumping away from the window. His fingers brushed against something and he turned to see what it was. The being inched towards the object, a white mask, it then picked it up and threw it at the window. "King!"

After a few minutes, it realized nothing had happened. It moved towards the mask, punching it in fury. It cried when it didn't break, instead it cut open his knuckles. He picked up the mask and threw it away onto another building, the mask now stained with blood. It watched Ichigo fight, helpless in helping him. It watched as the red haired man cut clean into Ichigo's shoulder, it screaming in terror at the pained look on Ichigo's face. Slowly blood began to pour out of its shoulder as well, the being curling up and sobbing. Its eyes widened, finding the mask back next to him. It placed the mask on its shoulder, clutching it close as it fell back unconscious.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still learning how to work this website, but I'm really enjoying it so far. The next 10-ish chapters are going to come out fast so I'm caught up with the FFN version.


	3. Fragile Bonds

The pale being opened his eyes to a bright hot sun. He shielded his eyes and dropped to the ground. When the light suddenly faded, he opened his eyes to find himself in pitch darkness.

“Who are you?” A deep voice sounded. The pale being looked up to see a white circle at the top of the darkness.

“I… don’t remember… Who are you?”

The light was silent for a minute before answering, “My name is Zangetsu.” Then the darkness peeled away and revealed itself as a cloak. An older man was revealed, wearing a brown cloak the same colour as his hair. “We need your help.”

“We?”

Zangetsu took out a sword. In the blade’s reflection was a very familiar orange haired boy.

“King!” The pale being leapt for the sword. To his surprise, the old man moved it away.

“He’s fighting a very powerful Soul Reaper. I need your help to teach Ichigo.” It was then that Zangetsu handed over the Zanpakuto. “You’re very similar to Ichigo. You should be able to teach him much easier than I.”

The other didn’t need much persuasion. He knew he had to help his King, _Ichigo,_ any way that he could.

“Shiro…”

The pale being looked up at Zangetsu, for some reason he felt like that was his name. It made sense, after all, judging by his appearance.

“…you must fight Ichigo and demonstrate that fighting with his Zanpakuto is different from fighting with a simple sword.”

* * *

 

“If you truly wish to fight, then take me back… from yourself!”

Shiro saw the Zanpakuto fly off the building. He leapt after it. Of course, Ichigo was there, but he knew he had a job to do. “Outta the way, partner!”

He giggled madly at the shocked look on Ichigo’s face. Really, it was _hysterical!_

“Take it back, if you think you can~” He didn’t mean to sound so taunting, but he wanted to see his King fighting up close. Those brown eyes were so beautiful all sparked up with _rage, lust, hate… instinct._ Shiro shook his head, smile faltering slightly. _Where had those thoughts come from?_

“Who are you?” King asked. Shiro narrowed his eyes and frowned. Not even King knew who he was?

“That’s so mean, _partner._ I’m just a friend. Now what are you doing just standing there? Come and fight me!” Shiro let the Zanpakuto slide from his fingers. He grabbed the bandage and started spinning the Zanpakuto. He was supposed to be teaching Ichigo different fighting techniques, right? Well, this was something he’d never seen before, and Shiro kinda liked it himself.

The Zanpakuto slipped and went flying at Ichigo. The King dodged, and Shiro had accidentally come up with another move he liked. He kept doing that a while longer, until an odd thought appeared.

“Zangetsu isn’t just a tool. He’s alive, like ya! You’ve gotta offer him your power like he offers it to you!”

_Where were these thoughts coming from?_ Shiro could swear one minute he knew everything about Zangetsu and the next there was nothing. When he brought the Zanpakuto back into his hands, a memory flashed before his eyes.

He ran at Ichigo, sword raised and a grin on his face. He was a Zanpakuto, made to kill, and a Hollow, made to destroy everything in sight!

_Zangetsu_ sensed the change in Shiro’s spiritual pressure. Deciding that Ichigo had learned enough, he returned the larger blade to Ichigo. Ichigo was sent off without another second to spare, and Zangetsu was left alone with Shiro. The fake Zanpakuto spirit winced at the broken katana in Shiro’s hands. _That could’ve been Ichigo._

Shiro fingered the tiny weapon in his hands before letting it vanish into the wind. He turned to Zangetsu, a small smile on his lips. “He’s very strong… train him well, _Zangetsu,_ because one day that power will be mine.”

The Old Man narrowed his eyes and sent Shiro back into the depths of Ichigo’s mind before the real inner world could unlock more of Shiro’s memories. He wasn’t entirely sure of what he’d just done, but he knew it wouldn’t be good.

* * *

Shiro crawled over to the window where he watched his King battle Kenpachi. He’d gotten close to Ichigo, and for those brief few seconds he not only knew who he was, but knew everything Ichigo did. He fought hard to remember every detail, but all that came to his mind was…

“Instinct. King… do you have one?” Shiro grinned, watching his King dodge each strike. He raked his nails down the side of the skyscraper, summoning his mask in the outside world, protecting Ichigo from the final strike between him and Kenpachi. “I do… it’s somewhere between protecting you and destroying you.”

Shiro stepped back from the window and looked up into the black skies.

“Can you hear me Zangetsu? I know you’re hiding something from me! I saw you in one of my memories! I SAW THE REAL YOU!”

Shiro removed his own version of Zangetsu’s blade and stabbed it into the orange skyscraper.

“I can taste it… a sliver of the power King and I have. I won’t stop until I get everything back. My memory, my power, and my King. _My_ King.”

He wasn’t sure how many days had passed in the real world. A day, a week, or a month… He knew it definitely wasn’t a year. Ichigo was still somewhere in the Soul Society, and from what Shiro had gathered he knew Ichigo wouldn’t leave until he’d saved Rukia. There was a time limit on that… but it had escaped Shiro’s mind.

Shiro suddenly felt a tremor rocket throughout Ichigo’s mind. Something bad had happened, and without a second thought he dove for the window. Ichigo was _dying._

Shiro awoke once more to the boy’s true inner world.

“He needs you…” Zangetsu said suddenly.

Shiro grinned and faced the old man. “Really? You’ve been ignoring me for so long. Funny how you only call when you need something.”

“Ichigo is going to die.”

Shiro’s eyes widened. “Just tell me what to do.”

“Ichigo is weak enough, you should be able to reach out and fight for him. Please… finish Byakuya off.” There was something about the way Zangetsu said the last line that almost made Shiro not want to go, but his King was in danger and it was his obligation to help.

After defeating the royal pain-in-the-ass noble Kuchiki, Shiro understood why. Ichigo rejected him so badly it _hurt._ Zangetsu set it up so Ichigo thought Shiro was the bad guy. Well fine, if that’s what Zangetsu wanted…

Then Shiro would give the old man hell.


	4. The Hollow's Mind

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I tweaked the opening of this chapter a bit but left mostly the rest as it was. Thanks for reading!

That was how I came to be. Sealing my powers also sealed my memories and locked me in a fake world. The same fake world Ichigo forced me deeper into every time he used that damn mask - also thanks to that no good identity thief.

I managed to escape once. I was full of hate and took it out on Ichigo - big mistake. When he took his sword back and pierced me with it, I realized there was never any chance that I could have won. There was no pain in me receiving that blow, and it was because, at that same moment, I accepted him as King forever.

I knew what it meant to be his Zanpakuto in that very moment.

I sighed, placing my hand next to the window. The fog was so thick over Ichigo. I could barely see him anymore.

Except for those - ever rare - times where he did lose control. And it happened more often than you think. In his sparks of rage, in the heat of battle, when all his has are his instincts to guide him, I get flashes of the outside world. And then there was that accident... against Ulquiorra. I tried giving him my power.  _Zangetsu_ intervened and instead of one of us remaining in control, Ichigo was, for lack of better words, dead, and I was still locked away. King had a great taste of my power then and had me on lockdown even tighter since.

Now it was happening all over again. My King, my beautiful King, was in so much pain.

I should have known, even if Juha wasn’t directly connected to Ichigo’s soul, that Muramasa tearing him out would hurt Ichigo.

I was angry, fed up with the lies and ready for Ichigo to know the truth, but Juha knew that. Even so, he agreed with me that Ichigo would be safer if Muramasa took him, if Muramasa believed he’d taken the root of Ichigo’s power he would leave us alone. In the end, Juha sacrificed himself for me, _me._ Why?

What was there for him to gain in going along with my plan? I don’t believe Juha fell for my ‘it’s the best for Ichigo’ speech. I think Juha was too smart to fall for a trap like that. So then, does he really want me to let Ichigo know the truth?

There was another cry of pain. I immediately shook off my own thoughts and ran towards the sound. That was when I sensed it, _the intruder in **my master’s** inner world._

It was followed quickly by Ichigo’s distress. He was struggling against – who was it – _Muramasa?_ Damn that bastard! Couldn’t he leave us alone? What’s got him so interested in Ichigo?

This was it. I’d reached the end of this false inner world. I hated how wrong the colours were here, almost as much as I hated my own appearance. I’m supposed to reflect Ichigo, aren’t I? I bet I’m the only Zanpakuto in existence that brought shame and disgust to its master’s image.

_Awaken…_

My eyes widened.

_Awaken your instinct. It lies in the deepest and darkest part of you._

I felt, just for an instant, a pull. Muramasa was trying to use his power on Ichigo too. I grinned a little at that. Stupid _baka,_ didn’t that Zanpakuto know? There’s no way anyone could use mind control on _my_ stubborn ass King.

_Now, I want you to show it to me!_

I giggled, if only for a few seconds. I took pride in knowing Ichigo would never bow to his enemies. Of course, with my next thought my grin faded. If he wouldn’t give in willingly, that meant they’d start to use force.

_You are awake, Ichigo Kurosaki. Let’s go. It is time to release the instinct inside of you._

Sure enough, I cringed at the sound of Ichigo screaming. Muramasa tore apart Ichigo’s soul, hunting for me. I couldn’t stand the sound of Ichigo in pain, so I gave in, only a little. I shattered the yellow glass and fell into the darkness, allowing Muramasa’s voice to carry me out of the darkness and into King’s inner world.

It was beautiful. I much preferred the blue skyscrapers to the hideous yellow.

A quick stretching of my senses told me Ichigo lay behind me, immobilized but still conscious. I was glad I was between the intruder and my King. Like hell I was gonna let that bastard touch Ichigo when I could do something about it. I didn’t take my gaze off of the rogue Zanpakuto as I spoke, “Oi, you. Did you call for me?”

I could hear Ichigo speaking to himself. “What now? What kind of game is he playing? And what is _he_ doing here again?”

 _Tch. Nice to see ya ‘gain too, King._ No, I didn’t dare make a comment out loud. The less information Muramasa was given about me and Ichigo, the better. That included our history.

Which is why I didn’t care to answer Muramasa truthfully when he asked, “Just what are you?”

I’d stick with what I’ve always said. “Me? Well, you can call me his basic instincts.” It was very, very vague, but it wasn’t completely dishonest.

“Interesting…” Muramasa seemed to be taking the lie. I only hoped he’d come to the same conclusion everyone else did, except Juha who knew who I was the moment he saw me. “If what you’re saying is true, then the power Ichigo displayed earlier is yours. The same as a Hollow’s.”

I grinned, _Bingo!_ “Well, who really knows?” Muramasa seemed satisfied with his conclusion. I drew out my Zanpakuto, eager to distract Muramasa before he came up with more theories. “Now it’s my turn to ask you some questions! Just who the hell are you anyway?” I have to play dumb, after all. I can’t allow Ichigo to know he hasn’t really been keeping me locked up all this time… Can I?

“I am the Zanpakuto Muramasa. I am here to free all of the Zanpakuto. Zanpakuto respond to my voice, and I possess the power to awaken their true instincts.”

I had to bite my tongue. It seems Muramasa was bending the truth too, but Ichigo seemed to believe it. He didn’t understand Muramasa’s true power, he couldn’t comprehend a Zanpakuto’s true loyalty. No doubt Muramasa was sent here by his master, and there was no doubt he’d do positively anything for them. Obviously, that included seeking out _something_ and causing a ruckus in the Soul Society.

“Ah, it all makes sense now,” Muramasa seemed to have come to another conclusion. “If you are truly Ichigo Kurosaki’s instincts, then you can utilize my power to your advantage. You can use it to liberate the instinct living within you.”

I had to laugh. He still bought my white lie, while I had his all figured out. He was obviously missing his master, the part of him that was more than just the instinct to overpower and kill. Muramasa raised his hand, and immediately I could hear whispers and taunts. He was attempting to control me again, but his power wouldn’t be enough to control both the Hollow and Zanpakuto that made up my being. On top of that, if he really was attempting to release my instinct and not control me, then he’d merely make my will to protect Ichigo that much stronger.

For a second the world went black. I heard Muramasa’s spell trying to persuade me to follow him. This must have been the same trick he pulled on all the other Zanpakuto. I was different, I pushed forward my Hollow instincts, and they got pulled into his spell instead. When I opened my eyes all I could see was Muramasa stepping closer to me, and all I wanted to do was tear him apart.

I waited, and waited, and waited a few more seconds, just until he was close enough… It was no good, every part of my body was screaming at me to kill him. I leapt forward too soon and Muramasa blocked me. I saw him studying me and I had to laugh. There was no way he’d ever figure me out! Even if he did, I was gonna kill him before he got the chance to use any of that information!

He pushed me back and I scoffed. “You’re not too bad!”

“I’m not here to play with you.”

Silly, silly Zanpakuto. You awakened a monster from its sleep and you’re not even gonna humour it?

“Prove to me that you’re Ichigo Kurosaki’s true strength! Don’t waste any more of my time!”

I laughed and let a grin widen my lips. “Let’s have some fun!” From the corner of my eye I saw Ichigo tense and that brought me back to my senses. I ran at Muramasa with as much speed as I could muster. It wasn’t like I could use Bankai, not without sending some confusing signals. I suppose using a Getsuga would be out of the question too. So I had to rely on the two things that wouldn’t give off a red light, my strength and my speed. I hit him with two hard shots and he blocked them both. I could see him silently questioning me again. Thinking quickly, I let slip the first words that came to my mind, “This is so much fun! It’s been a while since I fought without holding back!”

The look Muramasa gave me was much better this time. He wasn’t creating new ideas anymore, just concluding his previous thoughts. Before anything else could happen, I had to distract Muramasa, and also move this fight away from a recovering Ichigo. I accidentally used Flash Step, but Muramasa wasn’t analyzing me anymore so I guess I got away with it. That and I also swung my Zanpakuto against Muramasa’s hard enough that it sent him flying.

There. That provided us with more space to fight, and more room for Ichigo to recover. I saw Ichigo’s shock and suddenly felt like being a little cocky. “Come on out, Zanpakuto! I know there’s more to you than that!”

“Impressive,” Muramasa remarked. I grinned a little more at that. “I didn’t expect you’d be so capable. It’s true, you are a Hollow. Thanks to Zangetsu being released from Ichigo’s body, you were able to run free inside him. If you’re his Inner Hollow, then that helps to explain the strange transformation Ichigo went through at that time. Am I right?”

I cackled at his lack of deducting abilities. “So what if you are?”


	5. A Stressed Aliance

He leapt at me. For a moment I thought we were going to fight again, but Muramasa landed peacefully, this time much closer to Ichigo than I would have liked. The sorry excuse for a Zanpakuto continued talking, “Zanpakuto and Shinigami come together through teamwork and tranquility. Thanks to you, I can see there are exceptions to this, forces that are meant to be supressed… You are very interesting.”

 _Don’t get defensive… don’t get defensive… don’t get-_ I couldn’t stop myself from replying. “Oi! I let you speak your mind and you go putting me down like that?” I tried to end my speech there, but I just couldn’t stop. It didn’t help that the confused look on Muramasa’s face was just too priceless. Damn my Hollow cruelty. “Did you just say that he’s been keeping me supressed?”

“Am I wrong?”

“Oh yeah, dead wrong!” I pointed my blade at Muramasa again. Hopefully he got the hint that I wanted to fight.

Muramasa seemed more confused than ever. “Then explain it to me!”

“And why should I do that for you?” I’m glad my sadistic self could stop there. I gotta admit, though, the annoyed look Muramasa gave me was far too much to handle. I chuckled, “Besides… what’s got you so interested in Ichigo?” _Shit, play bad guy, play the bad guy!_ “You’re sure interested in us _both…_ What are you after here?”

He suddenly looked pleased, like _he_ had the upper hand again. “You’ll know in time.”

“Oh yeah? You won’t bet getting your way, not with me here!” I felt sorry for what came out next, but I just couldn’t allow Muramasa to believe I was anything more than a Hollow. “I don’t care what your plan is! I’ll devour Ichigo and take control of his body! That is my true instinct. And if you intend to stop me, then I’ll destroy you!”

I was less concerned with Muramasa’s reaction this time. The hate and fear I saw on Ichigo’s face nearly tore me apart, but it had to be done. If Ichigo believed it, then so would Muramasa. I was distracted with Ichigo long enough that I almost didn’t notice Muramasa heading for me. I blocked him, and then fought back. We exchanged words, but I couldn’t focus on what we were saying. My only goal now was to get Muramasa away from Ichigo again. I leapt over Muramasa and struck him from behind.

I felt pretty good, that is until Muramasa raised his Zanpakuto. I saw it flash then disappear. I didn’t give a damn about what he was really doing. If there was a chance he was trying to take control of me, I had to run away. It didn’t work the first time, but who’s to say that was his full strength? I won’t hurt Ichigo! Never! Especially not when he’s so defenseless!

I panicked when something wrapped around my limbs. “What is this!?” I practically screamed. I didn’t care about my pride right now. Fact was, my body stopped responding to me. I was frozen, helpless as I was suddenly sent flying past several skyscrapers and crashing into one. I tried sitting up, if I could just reach my Zanpakuto! But it was no use, Muramasa had me. He was getting closer, close enough to slit my throat if he wanted to. “Damn you!” I screamed at Muramasa, partially at Yhwach. This wasn’t fair! If only I could use my full power…

“What’s the matter?” He mocked me, pointing his blade at me. “Is that all you got?”

“Shut up!” Muramasa was forced back by a flash of blue light. My body was free! I let out a soft sigh of relief, collapsing onto all fours once. I glanced at Ichigo, but didn’t allow the relief to show on my face.

“That’s it!” I was comforted by the fact that Ichigo’s rage wasn’t directed at me. He continued speaking, “I can’t just let you take what you want!”

“For a moment there… I thought you were gonna let me die.” I spoke in a gently mocking tone, noticing Ichigo turn slightly to acknowledge that I spoke. “Why would you save me? Why would you do such a thing for me?”

“Do you really need to ask?” Ichigo looked away once I stood up. Wow, did he really trust me to stand in his blind spot? He was either really stupid… or suddenly very clever. “It’s who I am, and obviously you’re a part of me. That’s all there is too it.”

I sensed there was more. I could almost hear the questions swarming around his head, but he’d caught on that the intruder had to be taken care of first. I wiped blood from my lip. “Oh great, more of your arrogance.”

“Look,” his tone demanded my attention. He was looking at me now with his stern brown eyes. “Now that Zangetsu has disappeared, I don’t know what you plan on doing with me. I don’t know what I plan on doing either, but you and I both know something must be done…” He gestured to Muramasa. “And done now, am I right?”

I grinned at how powerful he felt. I grinned at the thought of _him_ suggesting we work together. I felt a surge of adrenalin, and murmured, “You’re such a pain in the ass.”

“What an interesting sight this is…” Muramasa murmured, officially killing my good mood. “A Soul Reaper choosing to protect a Hollow?”

“You can bet on it!” Ichigo snapped gently. I felt obliged to step closer to him, let him protect me. I’m sure not even Ichigo realised why he was suddenly so possessive of me, but I didn’t care. In fact, I was enjoying the attention. “He may be a Hollow, but he’s still part of me. I’m perfectly fine with that because _I’m_ the guy in charge around here!”

“Ichigo Kurosaki…” Muramasa shook his head. “What you’ve described is hardly the relationship that exists between a Soul Reaper and Hollow.”

I didn’t notice how close I was to Ichigo until I felt the cloth of his Shihakusho brush against my fingers. I couldn’t stop myself from wrapping my arms around him, leaning into his ear and murmuring the words I had wanted to say since Ichigo’s first battle, “Take me power, King. Use it to destroy him.”

Then just like that, Ichigo called upon Zangetsu’s power, _my_ power, and flashed in front of where Muramasa now stood. They locked swords, the intruder foolish enough to believe his will was stronger than my stubborn King’s. Muramasa soon shattered in a green light and his presence vanished completely from this world. I dropped to my knees, my heart pounding in my ears and hands throbbing in time with the power pumping through the air.

I would’ve been there longer, enjoying my high, if it hadn’t of been for Ichigo’s voice snapping me from my thoughts, “What are you smiling about? I’d hardly call that a victory, especially by your standards.”

King glared at me as I laughed, “What are you talking about?”

He marched over to me, lifted me by my collar and glared into my eyes.

I kept talking, “That was the biggest victory in years! The first time you’ve ever accepted my help!”

“You’re sick…” he spat, pushing me to the ground.

Ichigo was turning to leave, but I so desperately didn’t want him to leave me yet. I thought of something else to say. “You misunderstood what’s so great about it… You think me some sort of monster, Ichigo! Incapable of reasonable thought… Well, go on then! Ask me your questions!” I saw his eyes widen. “See? I’m not as stupid as you think! I can tell you’re itching for answers… c’mon, speak yer mind!”

He seemed to pause and think. After a minute, he replied with, “He called you out the same way he called out Zangetsu. It was the same pain, like he tore out a piece of my core.” I noticed him hug his stomach, as if he could still feel it. I calmed down then, wishing I could comfort him but as soon as I moved he raised his Zanpakuto to my throat. “Why didn’t it work on you!?”

I knew he wouldn’t be satisfied with the same bull shit I was telling Muramasa, and I also knew he could tell I understood exactly what he meant. I still chose to play dumb, “Why didn’t what work on me?”

“His mind control… or ability, or whatever! Zangetsu immediately turned against me! You should’ve turned on me too, but…” A thought lit up his eyes, but he shook his head.

 _‘That’s impossible,’_ I heard his thoughts, _‘He wouldn’t protect me.’_

“But?” I probed.

“But… you’re a Hollow, so I guess it doesn’t work the same way…”

I shook my head. “Why the hell are you so stupid?” Ichigo’s attention snapped directly onto me. “Speak your damn mind, idiot! There are perks to being stuck inside yer damn body. One of them is that I know just about everything about you! Which means I know when you’re trying to hide something from me!”

“Fine then!” Ichigo snapped. He lowered his Zanpakuto and I relaxed. “You took control and fought against Zangetsu. Then, you wouldn’t let Muramasa anywhere near me! You think only you can recognize my feelings? We have the same face, idiot! I saw how stressed and distracted you were when fighting Muramasa! I saw… I thought I saw…” He forced out these next words, “You were worried about me.”

I laughed, trying to shake off Ichigo’s new theory, but I could tell it wasn’t working.

“Why were you so worried? Obviously a stray Getsuga or hell, even chucking your Zanpakuto at me would’ve killed me in the state I was in! Instead, you kept your distance, and lead Muramasa to do the same!”

“That’s idiotic! Where did you come up with such an idea!?”

Ichigo threw his Zanpakuto at me, hilt first. I caught it, now balancing two blades in my hands. “Kill me then, Hollow. Do it, right now!”

He was positively convinced that I wasn’t going to do anything to hurt him. He was right, Ichigo completely nailed the situation. I knew he’d figure it out eventually. After all, my deduction skills came from him, so he definitely had the means to figure it all out. I let both Zanpakuto clatter to the ground, “I can’t… King, I really can’t.”

To my surprise, Ichigo smiled, “Good, because I can’t save the Soul Society by myself.”


	6. Zangetsu Defeated?

**Third Person POV**

Ichigo never thought he’d see the day where Zangetsu turned his blade against him, where the old man himself would place a sharp sword to his neck. After just barely dodging one of Zangetsu’s attacks, he was thankful that Zangetsu had decided to stop.

Ichigo took the opportunity to ask some questions, “Why are you fighting me!? What’s the point?”

With a slight glare in his glasses, Zangetsu replied, “I want to know which one of us is stronger.”

“That doesn’t make any sense!” Ichigo wasn’t given a chance to protest further. The word that usually brought him relief could only bring him dread as it left Zangetsu’s lips.

“Bankai.”

Ichigo grit his teeth when a nameless, blue strike was sent towards him. He forced a flash step out of his poorly collected spiritual pressure, and dodged the strike just in time. It wasn’t long until another was sent his way, this time it was much bigger. The force of Zangetsu’s strike ripped apart the ground and Ichigo could hear it cracking. He ran back as fast as he could, but the attack could keep up with him. Ichigo had to jump to the side to avoid it.

 _That force…_ Ichigo panted, dropping to his knees from sudden exhaustion. _Have I always exerted this much power?_

“Get up!” Zangetsu’s surprisingly angered tone snapped Ichigo’s head up. “We aren’t finished yet, Ichigo!”

“I know!” Ichigo’s grip tightened around his own blade. “If you really want to fight me… if that’s truly how you feel, then so be it! Ban-”

_‘Ichigo stop!’_

His hollow’s voice sent chills burrowing through his bones.

 _‘Ichigo… you need to be aware that his powers are no longer in your blade. You don’t have your usual power to draw from. Bankai won’t work!’_ Shiro could almost sense Ichigo’s distress. As much as he wanted to give Ichigo everything right here and now, he couldn’t expose the truth to Muramasa, who was watching nearby. That, and he needed Ichigo’s complete trust in order for Ichigo’s abilities to function properly. _‘You can use my power, but on one condition! You can’t use your mask!’_

 _Like hell,_ Ichigo thought. Though his mind quickly changed as another Getsuga Tenshou was sent his way. Ichigo cursed under his breath, his hand instinctively moving to his forehead. Then he recalled what Shiro had said and he immediately stopped summoning his mask. Instead, he gathered what reiatsu he could onto his blade, and released a quick Getsuga. He didn’t aim for Zangetsu, but instead aimed to create a smoke screen.

“Alright, you bastard Hollow, what’s the plan!?”

_‘Tch… would it kill ya to be nice? I am offering to help you, yanno…’_

“There’s no time for this! What do I do!?”

Shiro let a grin grace his features. He lay against a skyscraper, a lazy aura about him. _‘Does this mean you’re gonna listen to me?’_

Ichigo released a heavy sigh. “Whatever it takes… just please hurry.”

Ichigo dropped to the ground as soon as he noticed another Getsuga Tenshou headed his way. He threw a stunning blast in Zangetsu’s direction, hearing the old man shout, “You’re going to have to try harder than that, Ichigo. I know you’re stronger.”

“Why are you fighting me!?”

“I simply want to see how powerful you truly are… I have taught you all you need to know, whether or not you can surpass me is up to you. The reality is that if you were to fall to my blade right now, I would be completely content.”

Ichigo swallowed the spit that had gathered in his mouth. He glanced down at the blade in his hands. How was this going to defeat Zangetsu’s Bankai? _Unless, Zangetsu meant…_ “In other words, you want me to fight against you with everything I’ve got. Am I right?”

“You are.”

Shiro slowly sat up. Was that directed towards him?

He shot a warning to the King, ‘ _Using me won’t be easy!’_ And it wouldn’t. Unleashing his full reiatsu would startle Ichigo, who was terrible at controlling the power he already had. Maybe Shiro would only release small amounts of his power at a time.

 _‘I know,’_ Ichigo replied through their shared link. This was already a good sign that Shiro’s powers were reaching Ichigo, his mental connection with Ichigo had been re-established. _‘Give me everything you can…’_

_‘It would be my absolute pleasure to do so, King.’_

Next thing Ichigo knew, Zangetsu had thrown him against the ground. The old man’s sword nearly punctured his head, but Ichigo had managed to escape in time under the cover of the smoke screen. He immediately ran towards the clearing, swinging his blade in Zangetsu’s direction. He was easily blocked, and with enough force to send him flying back. Ichigo hit the wall, hard.

“I told you, Ichigo. If you don’t use your full strength then you’re going to die.”

Muramasa had a smug look on his face, obviously pleased with what was going on.

_‘Ichigo, you have to trust me in order for this to work!’_

_‘Shut up!’_ Was Ichigo’s only reply. Again, Ichigo’s hand twitched with the urge to summon his mask, but he was trying to supress it. He allowed himself a quick snicker. All this time he had been trying to supress his Inner Hollow, now he was trying to supress the urge to supress his Inner Hollow. Ichigo stood up and slowly allowed his eyes to close. _‘Prove it! Prove to me that I can trust you!’_

 _‘I’m not sure how I can possibly do that with you unwilling to give me a chance!’_ Shiro growled and scratched at the skyscraper. He slowly sighed, _‘My power’s yours, King. I’m the horse, the one who’s going to carry you into this battle. I won’t fight you for the crown; you’ve earned it.’_

To Shiro’s surprise, Ichigo’s mental barrier shattered.

Ichigo opened his eyes, blocking Zangetsu’s blade with his own. Shiro’s power filled his being and he felt compelled to grin a little. “You know what? I think I’ve figured it out…”

“Then let’s not waste any more time.”

As soon as Ichigo noticed Zangetsu begin to charge a Getsuga, he instinctively did the same.

Shiro closed his eyes, enjoying the hum of his power flowing through Ichigo’s inner world. He could touch the skyscrapers and breathe in the air without feeling like every inch of the space around him despised him. He finally felt complete, being the main source of Ichigo’s power.

It was worth it to see the shock on Zangetsu’s face. Shiro interpreted that as a good sign. If Zangetsu underestimated his and Ichigo’s combined strength, then maybe he’d be satisfied with the results of this brawl. Perhaps once Zangetsu finally returned to their inner world, he’d be inclined to let Shiro remain as the dominant portion of Ichigo’s powers.

Monstrous, red reiatsu raged around Ichigo. Ichigo took a deep breath. Relying on his Hollow and actually controlling his Hollow were two very different things. Although, he had to admit, it did feel nice not having to divide his attention between his fight and keeping his Hollow in check. That, and Shiro seemed to actually be obeying him. Why? Well, he’d ask that later, for now he was quite thankful for the power boost.

His Getsuga was about to swallow Zangetsu. That, apparently, was not in Muramasa’s plan.

Before Ichigo’s Getsuga could reach Zangetsu, Muramasa moved behind Ichigo and pierced his back. Ichigo’s cry of pain was drowned out by Zangetsu’s Getsuga surrounding him. Shocked, but not the least bit upset, Zangetsu appeared next to Muramasa. “You didn’t need to do that.”

“He was going to kill you,” Muramasa stated, matter-of-factly. “I can’t have that, seeing as you’re an important part of my plan. Now come on…” His last words were drowned out by the sounds of his coughing. Blood appeared on Muramasa’s hand before he vanished.

Zangetsu approached Ichigo’s limp body. Orange hair was slowly soaking up the blood, pooling from the wound on Ichigo’s back. “You would have won. Together, you and Ichigo would have defeated me. That is what I was hoping for. You must protect him, and do whatever is necessary, while I try to keep Muramasa at bay.”

Just as Zangetsu left, Ichigo’s blood slowly began to turn white. Shiro could be heard, screaming, infuriated. He clawed his way from Ichigo’s body, forcing materialization. Muramasa’s initial breach into Ichigo’s inner world left a large enough gap for him to escape out of. With fury lacing his eyes, Shiro lifted his Shinigami into his arms.

“How dare he!? Muramasa will pay for hurting you.” Shiro placed a hand over Ichigo’s wound, and it slowly began to stitch itself together. Shiro smirked, “It would appear… Yhwach has truly set me free. I can’t let anyone know the truth, not for now… I’ll simply be your Hollow…” A blue tongue licked white lips. “I’ll tear Muramasa to pieces when he least expects it.”


	7. A Different Kind of Trouble

“Ichigo… Kurosaki Ichigo!”

Brown eyes snapped open to a face he didn’t recognize.

“Good. You’re awake.” The Shinigami gave a quick bow. “C-Captain Unohana, Captain Ukitake and Captain Kyoroku need to speak with you immediately!”

Ichigo sat up in bed. He felt around his body but found that he’d been bandaged up and given new robes.

“Sorry for waking you, Ichigo…” The other Shinigami said. “But it’s urgent.”

Without wasting another second, Ichigo followed the Shinigami out of his room and down the hall to a meeting room. There he found the Captains waiting for him. He sat down and was soon busy answering all their questions. Ichigo explained what Muramasa revealed to him: how he was taking over the Zanpakutos and how Muramasa appeared to be searching for something. Ichigo also informed them that Zangetsu had been taken over.

An uneasy silence settled over the room.

“So… to review…” Unohana said softly. All eyes turned to her. “A Zanpakuto named Muramasa is the one controlling the Zanpakuto?”

Ichigo nodded, his orange hair rolling into his eyes. He brought a hand up from his lap in order to brush it back. “He can remove a Zanpakuto from a Shinigami’s body. He can then use any of the Zanpakuto’s suppressed rage against their Shinigami to convince them to turn against their Master. It’s something like mind control, but closer to manipulation…”

A loud clatter was heard before the door across the room slid open. Ichigo recognized that red hair and face full of tattoos anywhere…

“So you called?” Renji asked as he entered, nodding to Ukitake. Behind him were two figures that Ichigo didn’t recognize.

Captain Ukitake gave Renji a meek smile. “I did. You’ve fought and subdued your Zanpakuto… can you tell us anything about the battle that may aid other Shinigami?”

Renji frowned, “I wish I could. All I did was fight and defeat them… I’m afraid Zabimaru doesn’t remember anything.”

“Is this true?” Ukitake questioned.

Monkey, one of Zabimaru’s spirits, spoke, “Yeah. We don’t remember a thing from before Renji fought us. _Muramasa…_ doesn’t even sound familiar to us.”

“Renji!” Snake, Zabimaru’s other spirit, shouted, “Can we go now!? I’m starving!”

Renji snapped at Snake, “I already told you no! _And_ I already gave you something to eat thirty minutes ago!” Renji and Snake began to bicker. Monkey sighed and grunted in annoyance. She tried separating them and an even louder argument ensued.

The pale figure sitting behind Ichigo _snorted._ “You’re all _pathetic._ ”

Ichigo snapped a glare in his direction, effectively silencing Shiro.

Both Zabimaru’s spirits screamed at him, “WHAT DID YOU SAY!?”

Renji pushed them both back. “ _Damn,_ Ichigo. Your Zanpakuto thinks less before speaking than you do-” Renji stopped in his tracks at the sight of the figure sitting behind Ichigo on the floor. If the skin hadn’t given it away, then those eyes _definitely_ did. “That’s…”

“My Inner Hollow,” Ichigo stated.

“Isn’t he… supposed to be… yanno…?” Renji drawled, making an odd gesture with his hands. “ _Inner?_ ”

“You’re just a regular detective, aren’t you?” Shiro retorted. “Ain’t yer Zanpakuto spirits s’pose to be _‘inner’_ as well?”

Renji grumbled at Shiro’s remark, but bit his tongue before another argument broke out. Unnoticed behind him was Zabimaru. Both spirits hadn’t taken their eyes off of Shiro. They could tell, just by looking at him, that something was… _off._

* * *

Muramasa could hear the echoes of the Zanpakuto below. He couldn’t care less for their nonchalant bickering. He was aware they were growing restless, but his preparations hadn’t yet been complete. For now, he’d chosen a handful of powerful Zanpakuto to keep safe. None of them held the power he desired, but each of them could prove useful in discovering that power.

Zangetsu marched behind him, a hard frown on his face. He wasn’t scared of this place, but all the different presences were making him feel uneasy. Since he was technically part of Ichigo’s powers, Muramasa did retain some basic control over him. For example, a week ago he’d never abandon Ichigo’s inner world in an attempt to pursue his goals, now however… Zangetsu had a plan to test Ichigo’s true abilities. If it meant that it was time to hand the torch over to the real Zangetsu, then so be it. He had to know for sure that Ichigo could defeat him, and then maybe Ichigo stood a chance against-

“What’s going on here?” Muramasa spoke, his voice as bland as his care for the situation.

Haineko and Tobiume immediately turned around. Their eyes locked on Muramasa, ignoring, for now, the figure he’d brought down with him.

Haineko piped up, “Nothing! We’re just… talking.”

Zangetsu looked away, and then flinched as his eyes met the glare from another Zanpakuto. “Who are you?”

Zangetsu recognized that Zanpakuto’s spiritual pressure. _Hozukimaru…_ “Zangetsu-”

“ _Ichigo Kurosaki’s_ Zangetsu!?” Another Zanpakuto laughed. “Good riddance to that Substitute Shinigami! What worthless trash! No fighting spirit, no _clue_ on how to actually use his powers… just a big waste of spiritual pressure!”

Zangetsu found himself agreeing. Even though he knew it was due to Muramasa’s influence, he still hated himself for it. He also knew the real him, _Yhwach_ , would be thinking the same thing.

Muramasa spoke again. “I have the feeling Ichigo Kurosaki is still alive…” Zangetsu turned and looked at him, his expression unreadable. “I want you all to capture him, alive. He possesses an ability I want to look at further.”

“His Inner Hollow…” Zangetsu murmured.

Muramasa nodded. “I’ve never seen a Shinigami save a Hollow before. I’ve also never seen a Shinigami with the ability of instant regeneration. I believe Ichigo Kurosaki and this… ‘Inner Hollow’ share a relationship that is uniquely their own. Am I right?”

Zangetsu shrugged. “I merely supressed the creature. What they do without me is of their own concern.”

* * *

Ichigo sat in the back corner of the room, waiting for the doctor to finish examining Rukia. As the doctor left, Rukia spoke without looking at Ichigo, “I have a really bad feeling…”

Ichigo nodded, knowing precisely what Rukia was talking about. Byakuya had been defeated by his own Zanpakuto, and then disappeared. “Don’t worry, Rukia. We will find him.”

Rukia turned her gaze down to her feet. She slowly sat up on her bed, pushing the pillow against the wall in order to use it as a back rest. “Ichigo… it’s my fault, isn’t it? You lost Zangetsu because of-”

“ _No._ ” Ichigo said sharply. “It’s not your fault at all. I lost Zangetsu because I was reckless. I didn’t know what Muramasa was capable of until it was too late.” Ichigo stood and moved to sit at the end of Rukia’s bed. “Now then, stop worrying about me and focus on yourself. You got really banged up… Try and get some rest, alright?”

Rukia had locked eyes with Ichigo at this point. She chuckled a little, and then smiled. “Alright you big id-”

“Halt! Right there!”

Ichigo spun around to look at the source of the noise. Shiro flew past the doorway, followed closely by Monkey and Snake. Six or seven Shinigami chased after them, one of which was Renji. Ichigo quickly grabbed him and yanked him inside Rukia’s room. “Renji, what the hell is going on!?”

Renji sighed in annoyance, “I’m not really sure! Zabimaru said something about a rematch… and they’re gonna fight your Inner Hollow. Unohana and I tried to stop them, but they just took off running!”

Ichigo groaned inwardly before following Renji to try and stop the disaster before it happened. Ichigo didn’t want to think about what would happen if his Inner Hollow was allowed to roam the Soul Society freely, and he _definitely_ didn’t want to think about the damage a fight between Zabimaru and his Inner Hollow would cause.

Renji began to slow down. Ichigo stopped when he noticed a dark look on his friend’s features. “What is it?”

Renji slowly looked at Ichigo. “How bad is it? Your Inner Hollow…”

Ichigo tensed a little at that question. “He’s…” A hand moved to his stomach where Shiro had once stabbed him. Those memories came flooding back: the painful grip on his face before he was thrown through a building, getting hit by a full force Getsuga Tenshou, and even having Tensa Zangetsu speared through his body then slowly get pulled out. There was no denying that his Inner Hollow was his dark side, but the past few days… “He’s been acting weird lately. Before, whenever he showed up, it was always destroy, kill, dominate… But he’s been defending me, trying to protect me.”

Renji nodded, “Listen, Ichigo… After you left to see Rukia, Zabimaru and your Hollow were moved to another room, you know, in case Muramasa came back for them… Well, I overheard them talking…”

 

_“What are you staring at!?” Shiro spat at the other two spirits._

_Monkey, with a scowl, and Snake, with a grin, replied, “Why are you holding back?”_

_“Tch…” Shiro looked away. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’m kinda surrounded by Captains. Even without their Zanpakuto, taking out a Hollow like me would be easy-”_

_Monkey lifted Snake by his chain and threw him at Shiro. “Idiot! You think we’re gonna fall for something as ridiculous as this!? We know what you are, **who** you are!”_

_Snake spoke up, “So how about a rematch, huh? You were holding back before! Come on~ We’ve gotten stronger! We have Bankai!”_

_“We don’t know why you’re lying to everyone… but we’ll promise to keep your identity a secret if you promise us a good fight!”_

_“Fine.” Shiro’s voice went smooth, silky… hell even **sinful** with bloodlust. He slowly climbed to his feet. “May as well have some fun while we wait for the grownups to stop playing, eh?”_


	8. I AM Zangetsu

“I don’t… believe it…” Renji murmured.

Ichigo stared wide-eyed at the sight before him.

Monkey and Snake were both laying on their backs, completely exhausted. Shiro had his blade balancing on his finger tip and was sitting cross-legged across from Zabimaru.

“Is that all ya got?” Shiro muttered. “Wow, yer weak.”

“Hey! Don’t talk to my Zanpakuto like that!”

Ichigo chuckled a little, “Wow Renji, even my Inner Hollow can whip your ass.”

Shiro grinned and turned around to face Ichigo. “Tch, what’s with that smirk, _King_? It’s not like I _helped ya out_ or anything the first time you an’ Renji fought…”

Renji’s head snapped to face Ichigo. “Yeah… I bet you can’t beat me without any help, _strawberry!_ ”

A low growl sounded in Ichigo’s throat. “What was that, _pineapple?_ You wanna fight right here and now!?”

“Bring it, substitute!”

Shiro began to cackle madly as Renji and Ichigo fought. He sat back and watched, moving his eyes to observe Zabimaru every now and then in case they decided to attack him again. It took a few hours before Renji and Ichigo finally dropped. The sun had gone down. Shiro sighed and threw Ichigo over his shoulder before turning to Monkey and Snake. “Grab your idiot and let’s find them a place to sleep.”

Monkey sighed and lifted Renji to his feet. Snake slithered under Renji’s arm and together Monkey and Snake helped Renji walk.

Renji glanced at Shiro.

“It’s rude ta stare, yanno.”

Renji looked away, embarrassed at being caught.

Shiro sighed, “So, ya gonna say what’s on yer mind or not?”

“I…” the red-head frowned. “Are you really Ichigo’s Inner-Hollow?”

“I am.”

“But you’re also… not.”

Shiro snorted. “Well, seems you’re smarter than you look.”

Renji frowned. “Oi! Don’t talk to me like that! Jeez, you’re just like Ichigo but without a filter…”

The Hollow-Zanpakuto chuckled.

Monkey spoke up. “What about the Zangetsu that Muramasa took…?”

Shiro sighed and moved Ichigo around so that he lay bridal-style in his arms. Ichigo’s eyes were closed, his face peaceful. “A decoy. I had a, sort of, mutual understanding with the spirit Muramasa took. I guess we both just knew that if he takes me away from Ichigo, he’ll die.”

“You really think you’re that powerful?”

Shiro stopped and turned around to glare at Renji. “I _know_ I am. And what’s worse is that I’ve got the rage and instability of a Hollow running through me. I know that if I lose control it would mean the death of Ichigo. He can’t beat me… which is why I _refuse_ to join Muramasa at any cost.”

Renji smirked, “And here I thought Ichigo was just a dumb ass that couldn’t control his powers… He’s got no idea, does he?”

Shiro- _Zangetsu_ chuckled. “He’s smarter than people think. He just doesn’t want to jump to conclusions. Ichigo places a lot of faith in other people. He could probably piece it together himself, but why would he want to? He’d think his Zanpakuto betrayed him and who would want that?”

“No one.”

Shiro flinched at that voice.

“No one wants to feel that way. To have the one person they trust the most turn out to be the biggest liar they’ve ever met. Yeah, I couldn’t possibly think of a single person who’d enjoy that torture.”

Ichigo pushed out of Shiro’s arms.

“But that’s fine, right?” said Ichigo, his voice broken and sarcastic. “What’s _one more_ lie? What’s so wrong about _toying with someone else’s life?_ After all, you only me breathing so you that you get to live. What do you _really_ care?”

Shiro felt ice grip his limbs. “King, wait-”

“No! Leave me alone!” Ichigo ran off. Shiro moved to follow Ichigo, but his arm was snagged by Zabimaru’s chain.

“Let me go!” Shiro snapped, eyes flashing in the moonlight.

“You need to give Ichigo some space,” Renji said, standing between Monkey and Snake. The two spirits gripped the chain. “You’re his Zanpakuto. You should know that he’s got limits to how much he can handle. I don’t really know what kind of lies he’s talking about, but you obviously do. _I’m_ his friend, and I can tell that he needs some time alone to think.”

Pale shoulders slowly went lax. In the moonlight, Shiro’s skin glowed. “Fine. Maybe you’re right…”

A fleck of snow fell past Shiro’s face. His eyes shifted to the sky, where he noticed a figure rushing off in Ichigo’s direction. Spitting out a curse, Shiro freed his arm from Zabimaru’s chain and flashed away. Renji moved to chase after him, but Snake and Monkey grabbed his arms.

“Relax!” Snake hissed. “Let him go!”

“Yeah,” Monkey added, her voice calmer that her other half’s. “The situation has changed. Ichigo can’t fight with all those distractions running through his mind. He’ll die if he tries.”

* * *

“OUCH! YOU BIG OAF!” Haineko screamed as her tail was squashed beneath Tobiume’s foot.

“Sorry…” Tobiume mumbled, though she seemed like she couldn’t care less. She leapt gracefully from the ground and landed higher in the trees.

“What’s wrong with you!?”

“Nothing.”

“You’re so weird!”

“…”

There was the sound of crinkling footsteps in the distance. Haineko abandoned her bickering in favour of looking. She blinked, recognizing the orange spikes as they bobbed behind the bushes. “Hey, Tobiume… isn’t that Ichigo Kurosaki?”

The petit girl nodded. “I think so… Isn’t he the one Muramasa was so interested in?”

“Ugh, who _cares_ about Muramasa?”

Haineko’s whines went unnoticed by Tobiume. “Let’s play a game!” the smaller one squeaked.

“What?” Haineko questioned.

Tobiume grinned, “Let’s play a game with him! Come on… it’ll be fun!”

o/o/o

Ichigo couldn’t believe that tears were beginning to form in his eyes. He hadn’t felt this way in a long time… He hadn’t even feel this strongly when he found out that his dad had been hiding secrets from him. He didn’t care about all that! Everyone had their own secrets that they kept hidden! So why did it hurt so much that _Zangetsu_ had lied to him?

Oh, _right,_ how about the fact that his _Zanpakuto_ was _supposed_ to be the one he could trust the most? A manifestation of himself!

Ichigo brought his sleeve to his eyes and erased any signs of tears. While he was distracted, a pink ribbon slithered out in front of him. By the time Ichigo lowered his arm and could see again, it was too late. The ribbon wrapped around his throat. He cursed and tugged himself free, if only to be thrown harshly against the ground.

“No fair! You got a head start!” Haineko cried. Ichigo quickly got back on his feet and glanced in the direction of the voice. His eyes fell on a red-haired woman with a large bust, wearing a pink sweater and shorts. She had cat ears that just peeked out from her hair, and a long pink tail. “Growl,” She commanded, and a grey dust-like substance surrounded Ichigo.

Ichigo narrowed his eyes, not daring to touch it. “Getsuga-” He started, but betrayal rumbled through him and he couldn’t finish the name. He gritted his teeth and released just a simple blast. It was enough to disperse the dust.

“Your attacks lack in power, like your head lacks in brains!” Tobiume shouted. Ichigo was about to retort, when he noticed that Tobiume’s venom was directed at Haineko. The smaller Zanpakuto marched out of the shadows and into the moonlight, holding a shredded ribbon. Ichigo observed the ribbon in her hands was connected to the kimono she wore. Another, much larger ribbon, was wrapped over her shoulders and connected to two large bells.

“What was that!?” Haineko snapped back.

Ichigo raised his hands in defence and murmured, “U-Uh… hey, hold on, there’s no need to fight like this…”

“He’s right!” Tobiume screamed.

“Yeah! We can have a competition instead!” Haineko pointed to Ichigo. “First one that makes him squeal is the winner!”

Ichigo gulped as Haineko jumped for him. He dodged her assault then started to run. The large bells hanging around Tobiume began to glow. She spun around and with each rotation released a ball of flame in Ichigo’s direction. Ichigo flashed out of the way of one, while he ducked to avoid another.

“That’s _ENOUGH_!” Rangiku’s voice suddenly sounded. Ichigo heard a thud and Haineko dropped beside him, Rangiku sitting on her. Rangiku beamed and waved at Ichigo, “Hey! How’s it going?”

Ichigo blinked, but before he could answer Rangiku, there was another thud. Tobiume crashed to the ground, her bells falling on either side of her. Momo gave a curt bow to Ichigo, “We’ll take care of these two, Ichigo! You can get going!”

Ichigo observed the Zanpakuto, and then the two Shinigami. Suddenly the idea clicked in Ichigo’s mind and he said, “Alright. Good luck!” He flashed out of the scene. He kept running until he could no longer hear Tobiume’s bells ringing in battle. Then, he slowed to a walk. As the adrenaline faded, the hurt returned. Ichigo shook his head to clear it. “Maybe I can find Byakuya…” he said in hopes of distracting himself.

His eyes widened as a snowflake fell in front of him.

* * *

More and more snow was beginning to fall. Shiro forced himself to move faster despite the strain it caused in his legs. What if he got there when it was too late!? _No. No…_ His King was stubborn. He wouldn’t go down without a fight, that’s if he even went down at all… but after his fight with Renji Ichigo would be exhausted now.

Shiro heard a scream and he immediately stopped in his tracks. He recognized Ichigo’s voice immediately. Spinning on his heels, Shiro turned to briefly see orange spikes before they were enveloped in glistening ice. Shiro pointed his finger at the pillar and released a white and red Cero. The ice broke into pieces and shattered against the ground. Shiro rushed to catch Ichigo as he fell. Once his master was safe in his arms, gold on black eyes darted around, still very much aware that a threat could be nearby.

Ichigo gasped as he opened his eyes, his eyelashes coated with frost. He trembled and snuggled against Shiro, who felt hot against Ichigo’s frost-bitten skin. Ichigo shuddered as Shiro spoke, his breath warm on the top of his head, “Never run away from me again!”

“S-Sor-rry…” Ichigo spoke through chattering teeth.

The short lecture was interrupted. “You are not my Master…” Hyorinmaru spoke, his voice oddly monotone.

Shiro snarled, “I’d think that quite obvious!” He lifted his leg and braced it beneath Ichigo in order to replace his left arm. Shiro then pointed his finger at Hyorinmaru, a ball of energy forming.

Ichigo placed a hand on Shiro’s arm. “S-Stop! He doesn’t know who he is… he’s just trying to find Toshiro…”

Shiro turned his gaze to Ichigo. “Toshiro… Yeah, he’s close.” He lowered his arm. “I can sense his presence. He’ll be here soon.”

Ichigo felt Shiro shift him around but was too exhausted to react. He was lowered to ground for a moment, then something warm was draped over him. Ichigo felt Shiro lift him up again, Shiro’s arms now smooth as opposed to fuzzy. Shiro had wrapped Ichigo in his Shihakusho. That was probably what prompted Ichigo’s question, “Why are you… h-h-helping me n-now?”

“Because you’re my Master, Ichigo, that’s why.”

“Y-You didn’t help me b-before…”

“I _did._ ” Shiro sighed. “Everything I did was to keep you safe. You’re all that matters to me.”

“Oh…” Ichigo responded. He tried to think of more to say, but came up short. Ichigo felt a tug at his consciousness. His vision went first and then his hearing. After that, all Ichigo could feel was Shiro’s warmth as he passed out.

Shiro assessed the damage. Ichigo’s skin was pale and his lips were purple. His body was trembling and his clothing was stiff. As much as Shiro wanted to shred Hyorinmaru apart for what he’d done, he knew his top priority had to be getting Ichigo someplace warm. Besides, what kind of a hypocrite would Shiro be if he took some other Zanpakuto away from their master?


	9. A Zanpakuto's Desire

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Mature themes (sexual) present in this chapter.

Ichigo slowly opened his eyes to the white walls of what he recognized as a hospital room. He blinked several times as he looked around, the sudden brightness stinging his eyes. He felt a lump beside him and investigated what it was: someone, bare chested, their arms around him.

Ichigo yelped and immediately sat up. The arms slid down to around his waist. Before he could do anything else, the sound of a woman’s laughter made him freeze.

Rukia was sitting across the room. “Wow. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you jump like that.”

“R-Rukia!?” Ichigo shrieked. “Wait… Are you okay!?”

“I’m fine. How about you? Unohana was worried that you were gonna be out for a week.”

Ichigo tensed at those words. “How long have I been out?”

“Three days. A miraculous recovery, as always.”

Ichigo sighed and turned his attention back to the figure beside him. It was then that he realised the only source of warmth in the room was coming from the pale spirit. Ichigo stared at Shiro in disbelief and wonder. It was hard to imagine him as a blood thirsty Hollow when he was sleeping so peacefully next to him.

“He hasn’t left your side. . . ever,” Rukia murmured softly as to not wake Shiro. “If we even tried to get him to rest in his own bed, he’d threaten to rip off our arms. He almost did.” She rubbed her shoulder bitterly. “Your body temperature was dangerously low so he offered to provide whatever warmth he could until you woke up. That attack pierced your soul. According to Toshiro, it was a miracle that your blood didn’t freeze.”

Ichigo shivered and yanked the blanket closer, not realizing that it was Shiro’s shihakusho. Ichigo slowly lay back down, his head spinning now that his adrenalin had been depleted.

“He hasn’t slept for three days,” Rukia continued. “He was worried sick.”

“I get it. . . I’m a lousy master to my Zanpakuto,” Ichigo muttered.

Rukia chuckled. “Well, I wasn’t saying that. Hopefully, you two can work things out.”

Ichigo shrieked again when a face nuzzled his back. Rukia released a burst of uncontrollable laughter, silencing herself quickly with her hand. Ichigo scowled and hid his face in the pillow. He slowly began to drift off, though his numb toes were beginning to bother him. As though he had read Ichigo’s mind, Shiro pressed his leg against Ichigo’s foot and heated the frost-bitten flesh. Ichigo sighed in bliss as he drifted into unconsciousness.

Rukia observed the two. After a minute, she left the room. She had to admit, it was a bit alarming how possessive Shiro was of Ichigo. Perhaps the Hollow-Zanpakuto didn’t see it, but his way of protecting Ichigo was beyond simply keeping him safe. He kept him away from anything dangerous and anyone harmful. Rukia was sure Shiro knew that she wouldn’t hurt Ichigo, however, he seemed unwilling to chance anything. Well, she knew where she would get some answers, and fortunately she knew that Kisuke had found a way to get into the Soul Society.

* * *

“Ichigo…”

The Substitute Shinigami slowly opened his eyes.

Unohana stood over him, smiling, “Hello dear. Drink this.”

Ichigo wasn’t exactly in a position to say no. A spoon was placed at his lips and the _most disgusting_ liquid he’d ever had was forced down his throat. He coughed and hacked after swallowing, and Unohana simply assumed the usual intimidating smirk she always had.

“That should reduce the fever. You’ve been in a coma-like state for a little over a day since Rukia last spoke to you. Rest for a bit more.” She grinned at him.

Ichigo wasn’t sure who was scarier, Unohana or Shiro.

Speaking of. . . as Ichigo slowly leaned back into bed, Shiro’s warm arms surrounded him. He sighed and allowed his Zanpakuto to embrace him once again. Ichigo blushed. He was beginning to enjoy the comfort the other brought to him. After Unohana left, Ichigo said, “You know you don’t have to serve my every whim, and you shouldn’t feel like you owe me anything.”

Shiro chuckled, “You’re hilarious to think that anything you say will make me change my mind. I’m going to _protect_ you, Ichigo, whether you like it or not.”

Ichigo rolled his eyes. He heard Unohana’s footsteps get farther away. As soon as she was completely gone, pale hands slid over sensitive midriff skin. Ichigo yelped and twitched, attempting to free himself, but his Zanpakuto was too strong. “D-Don’t do th-that…”

Shiro grinned, hot lips pressing against Ichigo’s neck. “And why not? _You_ seemed to be enjoying yourself while you were sleeping…”

Ichigo’s face immediately turned red. “You touched me while I was sleeping!?”

Laughter erupted from Shiro’s throat. “Of _course!_ How could I not? But of course, _you_ couldn’t keep your hands off of me either.”

“And what’s _that_ supposed to mean!?”

“It means whatever you think it means, _King._ ”

Ichigo shuddered at his nickname. He felt some fear, but blended deep within it, was some form of _pleasure._ Pleasure from what, exactly, Ichigo wasn’t sure. Ichigo’s brain stopped functioning to the point that he couldn’t think of a way to change the subject. Thankfully, Shiro did that for him.

“You’re still so cold.”

“Am I?”

Shiro frowned and locked his leg in-between Ichigo’s, his knee accidentally pressing into a _very_ private place. Ichigo bit his tongue, suppressing a guilty moan. Those hands on his torso were quite teasing as well. One was near the line of his hakama, the other just scarcely close to a nipple. Ichigo released a hot gasp when Shiro shifted.

The Zanpakuto spirit hadn’t noticed at first. However, since his Shinigami was too shy to say anything, Shiro was soon picking up on a distressed feeling within the other’s spiritual pressure. That little gasp Ichigo made was enough for the information to click. Oh, how Shiro _wished_ he could have his way with his King right now. Instead, he settled on teasing the young virgin. Fingers danced around the swiftly hardening nipple, while Shiro’s knee subtly rubbed against Ichigo’s growing problem. He noticed Ichigo had drifted into a half-asleep state, which was absolutely perfect. Shiro could get away with more now that Ichigo wasn’t able to consciously stop him.

Shiro’s hands began to move as he grew bolder. He flicked the hardened pink nub on Ichigo’s chest, observing Ichigo’s twitching Adam’s apple as noises steadily grew in his throat. Shiro’s other hand undid Ichigo’s hakama, and explored the area below. A pale hand grasped the base of Ichigo’s cock, and his own stirred at his King’s now confirmed size. He squeezed the base, finally receiving a moan for all his hard work. Shiro moved his hand up and down his King’s hard on, using the pre-cum that spilled from his master’s tip in order to slicken his hand’s movements. He fed from the sinful noises and lust in Ichigo’s spiritual pressure, taking in as much as he possibly could from his King.

Zangetsu’s eyes snapped open and he sat up in bed. He looked at Ichigo, still untouched, and still sleeping. He hadn’t _done anything_ to the young adult, Shiro had simply been dreaming, but _why_ did he dream up something like _that?_

The Zanpakuto spirit shook his head. He had to do something to control these urges. Did other Zanpakuto love their wielders this much? He didn’t think so. He knew for sure that Zabimaru didn’t completely trust Renji yet. And Shiro shuddered at the thought of Ichigo ignoring him like Zaraki did with his Zanpakuto. So _why_ , and _when,_ did Shiro become so-?

“Hollow,” Ichigo mumbled, half asleep eyes locking onto Shiro’s.

Shiro frowned, “I actually have a name, yanno.”

“Sorry, I, umm. . . I’m not used to it.” Ichigo continued to speak in a hushed voice. “You look so tired.”

“Maybe I am. It’s tough looking after yer ass all the time.”

Ichigo chuckled bitterly. “Well, you don’t have to.”

Shiro pulled up the blankets that either he or Ichigo had kicked off in their sleep. He dragged his Shinigami close to him, warming Ichigo with his body heat. “Baka. I’m not like your friends. I’m not about to roll over and let you stay in charge. I intend to protect yah and keep yah safe, so don’t bother tryna be the hero with me around.”

“You’re warm,” Ichigo murmured, unable to completely follow Shiro’s rant. He snuggled Shiro and rested against his bare chest. “ _So_ warm.”

“No,” Shiro frowned, “you’re just cold.”

The Zanpakuto wrapped his arms around his master, nuzzling the back of his neck. It was duly noted that Ichigo had a truly _delicious_ scent. Shiro grinned softly. He imagined how pissed off his King would be if he ever truly clued in to what they were currently doing, not only _cuddling,_ but _spooning._ With a sigh, Shiro brought Ichigo underneath his chin. He kept his eyes locked on their surroundings for as long as he could before passing out. It would be a long time before he’d allow anyone he didn’t trust near Ichigo again. A long time.


	10. Protector

“Ichigo!” Renji burst into the room, if only to narrowly miss being stabbed in the face by a white Zangetsu. The red-haired man paled, “THAT WAS CLOSE!”

“I won’t miss the next time you barge in here! Ichigo’s sleeping, and if you wake him up I’ll kill you!” Shiro warned, eyes narrowing. “What do you want? It’d better be important or else-”

“Stop.” Ichigo muttered, “It doesn’t matter. I’m awake now. . . BECAUSE BOTH OF YOU ARE LOUD AS FUCK!”

Ichigo knocked Shiro out of bed. Renji flinched and was glad he was out of Ichigo’s reach. Brown eyes turned on him and Renji flinched at the murderous look in them.

“What the hell do you want, Renji!?”

“I-I, umm. . .” Renji reached to the side and dragged someone in.

Ichigo blinked. “Toshiro?”

The Captain moved his eyes to the floor.

Ichigo smiled, “So, you’re all right then. That’s good. What’s bothering you?”

“I’m sorry,” Toshiro interjected. “Hyorinmaru could’ve killed you. It’s my fault for not reaching him in time.”

“Oh,” was all Ichigo could think of as a response. Ichigo could feel Shiro’s spiritual pressure begin to rise. There was rage in Shiro’s presence, but also forgiveness. Shiro settled back in next to Ichigo. Ichigo chuckled, “Toshiro… I don’t blame you for anything! How could you have possible known I’d be there? And how could you have known that your Zanpakuto would attack me? There wasn’t anything you could’ve done anyways. I’m the one that ran off! It’s just a coincidence! But. . . did you manage to get Hyorinmaru back?”

Toshiro’s eyes had widened a little in shock. “Yeah,” He looked up at Ichigo. “Thank you, Ichigo. I’m glad you’re recovering well.” Ichigo’s mood was contagious. Toshiro chuckled as well, “Also, it’s ‘Captain Hitsugaya’ to you.”

Ichigo smirked and watched Toshiro leave before he was suddenly hugged by Shiro again. Ichigo huffed, “Will you stop doing that!?”

“Is it so bad that I’m just happy you’re alive?”

Ichigo rolled his eyes at Shiro’s question. Even after all this distraction, he still felt bitter that his Zanpakuto had lied to him. “So, now what? You went from killing me to cuddling me awfully quick.”

“Yeah, well,” Shiro huffed. “You went from keeping my mask as a lucky charm to tossing me in the sewers real quick too.”

Ichigo blinked. “Wow, you remember that?”

“Sure I do.”

“Well then, you should remember that I wasn’t the one who threw the mask away!” Ichigo lightly hit Shiro on the head. “Besides. . . Hollows are-”

“Evil? Mindless? Ravenous?” Shiro suggested. Ichigo frowned in guilt and looked away. Shiro sighed and yanked Ichigo into his lap. “Yeah, they are. I am too, but yer forgetting that I’m not just a Hollow. I’m also Zangetsu, _your_ Zanpakuto.”

“Then why try killing me? Why hide the truth?”

“Technically I _did_ say that I was Zangetsu.” He reminded Ichigo, “Also, when you and I fought, it was the only way to teach you how to use your Bankai. It was also the only way to get you to understand how to use your Hollow powers. Do you remember what I taught you?”

Ichigo rolled his eyes, “Instinct, blah, blah, blah….”

Shiro huffed in mock hurt. “Well! Hollows _are_ creatures of instinct, and you are part Hollow whether you like it or not. Hollows don’t know what they’re doing, they _feel_ it. The only way to get you to understand that was to fight you. That’s how you killed me, remember? You _felt_ it, raw instinct and power. Using that feeling, you took back your sword and, well, you stabbed me.”

Ichigo pouted, “You stabbed me first!”

Shiro laughed. “But you won, didn’t you? _And_ you finally felt like you could trust your Hollow powers. You finally used them. You didn’t like it when you weren’t the one in control, so I played the bad guy. Once you beat me, you felt secure, but now you know I was never truly gone.” Ichigo flinched as Shiro brushed his fingers across his cheek. “I was just supressed, which is why I don’t like it when you use your mask. It keeps me away from you, but I like being near you.”

“Th-This is getting borderline creepy,” Ichigo said as Shiro gripped his chin and tilted Ichigo’s head back to face him. “Zangetsu.”

Shiro blinked, his real name shocking him back into his senses. His eyes lingered on Ichigo’s, able to see each speck of gold in his Master’s brown eyes with how close they were. He knew Ichigo was staring right back at him too, but Ichigo wasn’t scared. Shiro had expected the Shinigami to tremble from his oddly coloured eyes, but if anything, Ichigo was investigating his eyes as much as Shiro was investigating the other’s.

“I never intended to hurt you,” Shiro spoke softly as to not break the trance they were both in. “Everything I did was to keep you safe, and to give you the power you needed to keep moving forward.”

“I can see that now,” Ichigo murmured.

He observed his Zanpakuto’s features. Shiro was different from the last time Ichigo really saw him, when Shiro fought Muramasa. Two black lines graced the Hollow’s left cheekbone, and another three crossed the left side of his forehead. Shiro’s hair was also longer now, down to his neck but no further. Ichigo noticed also, with slight frustration, that Shiro was now two or three inches taller than he was. And, of course, there was Shiro’s perfectly pale skin and his harvest-moon eyes that were almost. . . beautiful. For a moment, Ichigo could feel nothing but pride that this amazing being was _his_ Zanpakuto, and his alone. Ichigo didn’t flinch this time as Shiro’s fingers traced his jawline, and then his lips. Despites the pointed nails, there was no bite to Shiro’s touches. Ichigo’s eyes slowly fluttered shut.

Shiro wanted to hum at Ichigo’s soft skin beneath his fingers. He enjoyed it all. The smoothness, the peach fuzz near Ichigo’s sideburns and around his lips, which were the signs of his King becoming a man. . . even the few scars on Ichigo’s face that shone silver in the light.

Ichigo chuckled a little when Shiro tugged gently on his ear. He smiled as Shiro brushed Ichigo’s bangs to the side. It was odd, this feeling in Ichigo’s stomach: he’d been at war with himself for so long, but now everything seemed to be coming together. He much preferred Shiro’s peaceful touch than the sting of his blade. Ichigo’s cheeks slowly turned red, especially as Shiro’s face inched closer.

He could feel Shiro’s breath on his lips. They were so close, intoxicatingly close. Ichigo placed a hand on Shiro’s chest, feeling, to Ichigo’s surprise, Shiro’s heartbeat. Ichigo opened his eyes, his view almost completely taken up by Shiro’s face.

“Ehem,” Renji cleared his throat. “If you two are done. . .”

Shiro flinched away from Ichigo, and the orangette quickly copied the other’s actions. Ichigo blinked to diffuse the haze that had clouded his mind. He turned his body away from Shiro and locked his eyes on Renji.

Renji slowly took a seat on a chair in the corner of the room. “Ichigo, there have been some alarming discoveries while you were recovering. First off, Mayuri did some tests and found out that if a Zanpakuto is killed by someone other than their Master, they vanish completely. If they’re killed by their Master, they revert to their original form. That’s what happened with Zabimaru and I. It also releases them from Muramasa’s control.”

Ichigo slowly nodded. “So, we have to be careful about who fights who, right?”

“Yeah,” Renji shifted slightly where he was sitting. “Luckily, Rangiku, Captain Hitsugaya, and Hinamori have all recovered their Zanpakuto. On the other hand. . .”

Ichigo could tell something was truly bothering his friend.

“Rangiku and Hinamori had a run-in with Muramasa. They said he’s weakened, like he’s sick, but. . .” Renji sighed, “Byakuya prevented them from capturing Muramasa.”

“Byakuya!?” Ichigo sat up. “What do you mean prevented them?”

“I mean he’s betrayed us!” Renji shouted, looking on the verge of tears. “I didn’t want to believe it either, but he beat up Rangiku and Hinamori, they’re in hospital beds now! He fought against me, and he even destroyed Sode no Shirayuki! I don’t understand why he would-”

“Renji!” Ichigo sharply interjected. “Byakuya has always acted according to his own beliefs. Do you really think he’s following Muramasa and willing to let the Soul Society fall?”

Renji blinked at Ichigo’s response. Even Shiro seemed surprised.

Ichigo continued, “Trust me. I know from experience that things aren’t always as they seem, but everything will make sense if you have faith in the man you know Byakuya to be. He wouldn’t hurt Rukia. In fact, I bet he’s just trying to protect her in a very stupid way.” Ichigo gave Renji a reassuring smile. “If he really is on Muramasa’s side, well. . . then you and I will just have to beat some sense into him!”

Renji slowly returned Ichigo’s smile. “Wow. You’re right, surprisingly.”

Ichigo scoffed and Shiro chuckled.

Renji turned his head to the side to look down the hallway. “Can you feel that spiritual pressure? Captain Soi Fon cornered many of the Zanpakuto a couple of hours ago. Their Masters showed up and they’re still fighting right now. I got taken back here, since I got hurt pretty badly fighting Byakuya. Rukia’s gone to see Urahara and Captain Kurotsuchi, hoping they can fix her Zanpakuto.”

Ichigo sighed, “Right. Well, I guess I’ve done enough lying around. I should get back out there.”

Renji snorted, “If you see Byakuya, give him hell for me.”

“You bet.”

Ichigo stood and Shiro swiftly followed him. When they were down the hall and out of earshot, Shiro grabbed Ichigo’s shoulder. “How do you plan on stopping Byakuya? You don’t have a Bankai.”

“I don’t?” Ichigo’s shoulders slumped. “Oh yeah, that’s right. . . It didn’t work against the Old Man.” Ichigo frowned, “How come? If you’re supposed to be my Zanpakuto, then-”

“He’s a different part of your powers. The sword you’ve been wielding as your Bankai was his sword. My Bankai. . . _Our_ Bankai, is much different.” Shiro placed his hands on Ichigo’s shoulders. “We haven’t trained together yet.”

Ichigo frowned, “You’re right, but there’s no time now. I have to find Byakuya.” His eyes softened and locked onto Shiro’s. “Besides, you’ll be with me, right? Nothing will happen if I’ve got you.”

Shiro’s eyes widened. “Well, y-yeah. . .”

Ichigo nodded. “Then let’s get going!”

Shiro watched Ichigo take off. He felt, for the first time in ages, nervous. His fingertips tingled and stomach was buzzing. Was Ichigo making him feel this way?

He shook his head. _N-No, certainly not. . ._ He ran. Using a blend of sonido and flash step, he could catch up with his King. He chuckled and murmured, “Oi, Ichigo, any idea where you’re going?”

“Nope!” Ichigo continued outside and towards where he’d run off to a few days ago. “But, if there was a run-in with between Rangiku, Hinamori, and Byakuya, then we’re gonna find some traces of what happened where I ran into their Zanpakuto. I doubt we’ll find anything. . . but it’s our best lead.”


	11. New Perspective

Ichigo skidded to a halt. He saw Shinigami (some he recognized from Squad 4) carrying out wounded Shinigami on stretchers. Ichigo glanced at each of the wounded’s faces, recognizing many of them: Ikkaku, Yumichika, Izuru, and more.

His heart skipped a beat. Ichigo moved to go to them when Shiro grasped his shoulder. Brown eyes turned on his Zanpakuto with a glare, but Shiro spoke first. “I know what you’re thinkin’, Ichigo, and yer not responsible.”

Shiro felt his master’s shoulder tense beneath his touch. Ichigo knew Shiro was right, but still felt so much guilt. “If you really know what I’m thinking, then you should know that I have to find Byakuya _and_ Muramasa. I’ll beat Byakuya to his senses and I’ll defeat Muramasa!”

A grin spread across Shiro’s lips at that promise. This was the King he bowed to. “Good. There’s still fighting going on. You might get your chance before this night is over.”

Ichigo felt a shiver crawl up his spine, but whether it was because of Shiro’s grin or because he was just as impatient for a battle as Shiro was, Ichigo wasn’t certain. One thing was steadily becoming clearer to Ichigo, however, and that was that Shiro was _definitely_ his Zanpakuto.

“Scatter…” Ichigo gasped as a familiar pink petal drifted past his face. Before he could respond, he was in white arms and all the way across the courtyard. The injured below were suddenly surrounded by petals. Ichigo released his breath when the petals cleared and no one had been harmed. There was a deep hole where he and Shiro had been standing.

“Byakuya!” Ichigo growled, but he hadn’t seen the dark-haired nobleman yet. There was a strange-looking man wearing a mask down below. With a flick of his wrist, another wave of petals was sent in their direction. This was Senbonzakura.

“You better stay here,” Shiro murmured from their new destination. “He’s targeting ya, but I bet his pride won’t refuse a fight with me. Protect the injured and the rest of Squad 4.”

Ichigo was about to protest, but the concern in golden eyes made the comment get caught in his throat. He watched Shiro vanish and appear next to Senbonzakura. As the fight began, it became obvious that this would be a long one. Ichigo started to sweat once Shiro started laughing. Of course, the friggen bastard was enjoying this.

Shiro reminded Ichigo a lot of Zaraki, taking thrill in the fight and using any means necessary to win. Shiro wasn’t like other Hollows who only fought for survival. Instead, he rather enjoyed proving he was the strongest, also reminding Ichigo of Grimmjow. Still, there was something more about Shiro that Ichigo couldn’t quite comprehend. The orangette sighed, wondering what would happen if he finally gave into his instincts, like Shiro always suggested.

Then Ichigo cringed at the thought of Zaraki or Grimmjow ever meeting Shiro. That would be the absolute end of everything.

Ichigo flinched when Senbonzakura suddenly drew blood. Ichigo jumped to his feet, fighting every urge to just run in and help his Zanpakuto. “What are you doing!? Zangetsu… use Bankai!”

“I can’t, idiot!” Shiro spat at Ichigo, glancing at him for a split second before he had to flash out of the way of another cloud of petals. “Ichigo, ya haven’ learned yer real Bankai! So, duuuh, I haven’t learned it either!”

“AHHH!” Came a cry. Ichigo spun around, catching a glimpse of a Zanpakuto spirit sent flying. The unique square shape of Wabisuke was in the hands of its spirit as he went flying into a building nearby.

Following soon after was none other than Kenpachi Zaraki. Ichigo cursed his luck. “Bah! You’re boring!” Zaraki muttered and immediately turned away from the wreckage. Cold eyes turned on the others that had gathered in the square. He sized up Senbonzakura and Zangetsu, then his eyes drifted slightly off to the distance where he’d attracted the attention of Soi Fon and three other Zanpakuto.

Kenpachi leaned on his back foot with a smirk, Yachiru hanging over his shoulder. He slowly asked, “Now, I have a question… who amongst all of you is the strongest?”

Senbonzakura tensed as Kenpachi’s eyes landed on him. Kenpachi rushed towards him and punched him in the gut, the other, of course, trying to block it but ending up getting sent flying as a surge of golden Spiritual Pressure surrounded him. Kenpachi scoffed, “Yeah, I didn’t think it was you.”

Kenpachi turned his gaze on Shiro, Senbonzakura wounded against yet another wrecked building.

“And who are you?” Kenpachi muttered. His eyes slowly drifted to Shiro’s sword, still in Shikai. A grin appeared on Kenpachi’s face. “I would recognize that sword anywhere.”

“Kenpachi wait!” Ichigo shouted. “He’s not an enemy!”

But Ichigo’s plea was ignored. Kenpachi’s Spiritual Pressure surrounded everyone once again. This time it was more violent, shoving everyone miles apart. Ichigo, with whatever dull senses he had, felt Shiro slip out of his range. Ichigo was sent flying out into a field, landing mere inches from Senbonzakura. Ichigo gulped. If they were about to fight then Ichigo was screwed. He had his Shikai, sure, but it took the speed of his Bankai and interference from Shiro to defeat Byakuya’s power last time.

“So,” Kenpachi muttered, “it would seem that, currently, you’re stronger than Ichigo.”

Shiro bared his teeth. “Tch, it’s more complicated than that, but I’m sure you don’t care.”

“You’re right. I don’t.” Kenpachi raised his sword. “All I want is a good fight!”

Shiro gathered reiatsu onto his sword. His expression darkened, and yet, an amused smile found its way onto his lips. “I wouldn’t mind tha’.”

Their swords clashed, sparks flying in every direction. Their reiatsu mingled and send shockwaves across the area.

Ichigo grit his teeth as Senbonzakura drew closer. Ichigo flashed away, narrowing avoiding the other’s Shikai, before getting caught by another wave from behind. By instinct, Ichigo surrounded himself in his reaitsu, and it blasted away most of the petals but a few still nicked his robes.

“Enough,” Byakuya’s cold voice sounded. He placed a hand across his Zanpakuto’s chest. “It is not necessary for you to fight him here. He cannot win in this state, nor can our plans afford to lose him.”

Ichigo frowned. Once again, he was weak, in the middle of someone’s bad agenda, and left in the dark with so many questions. “Byakuya wait! I need to talk to you! Why are you doing this? Don’t you care about Renji or your squad!? And what about Rukia? How do you think she’s feeling!?”

Not so much as a twitch graced Byakuya’s emotionless expression. He vanished and Senbonzakura swiftly followed.

“Damn it!” Ichigo cried, punching the ground. His fists stung but the pain would fade in a minute or two.

Slowly, a purple fog surrounded Ichigo. A loud roar and the crumbling of buildings echoed across the land, hitting the Substitute Shinigami full force. Shocked eyes turned to see, off in the distance, some creature with a swollen yellow head looming about four floors too high for Ichigo’s liking.

The purple fog surrounded Ichigo and instantly his throat went dry. Ichigo hacked as it seemed like his lungs were refusing to accept the substance, and his vision began to spin. Ichigo moved to run when he heard a shout, “Don’t breathe it in, King!”

Suddenly, Shiro was in his face, and something had been placed at his lips. Anger and then embarrassment filled the teen as his lips were sealed over by his Zanpakuto. He squeezed his eyes shut as air filled his lungs. It still made him feel dizzy, but it wasn’t a human body, so the lack of oxygen didn’t take its full effect as it would on Ichigo’s human body. Plus, it wasn’t nearly as painful as breathing in toxic gas.

Ashisogi Jizo slowly shrunk back to its smaller form. With a bat of its wings, the gas vanished. Shiro released Ichigo, his lips still tingling from such an intimate action, and Ichigo’s blush wasn’t making the situation any better.

The butterfly-creature-thing flew towards the pair, cocking its head. How were those two conscious right now?

“Ahaha!” Yachiru giggled, appearing directly beside the butterfly. The three of them flinched before Ashisogi Jizo took off. Yachiru smiled at the two boys. “Don’t worry, Ichi-chan, and Ichi’s Zanpakuto-chan, I’ll beat it! It’s really bad at playing hide n seek!”

Ichigo could only blink in response as the pink haired girl took off. Kenpachi following her swiftly.

“Ichigo, are you hurt?”

Brown eyes slowly turned towards Shiro. A deep red crossed tanned cheeks. “Th-Thanks to you, I-I’m fine.”

Silence ensued – a very, very awkward silence. Fortunately, a loud shattering sound broke the quiet. Ichigo and Shiro turned their eyes to find a crumbled Zanpakuto at Kenpachi’s feet. Mayuri steadily approaching him.

“Now, now, Zaraki, just because my Zanpakuto ‘interrupted your fight’ doesn’t mean you get to inflict punishment on it. That’s my job for it disobeying me.”

“Shoulda known it was Mayuri’s Zanpakuto,” Shiro muttered in Ichigo’s ear. The other’s closeness sent tingles down Ichigo’s spine and he flinched away, much to Shiro’s disappointment.

A freakishly painted face turned on Ichigo, making Ichigo jump backwards and close any distance he’d made between him and Shiro.

* * *

“I said no!” Ichigo cried, Mayuri hovering over him with a needle filled with a questionable, bubbling, green liquid. Shiro watched his master take off only to get pinned by Mayuri’s assistant. Nemu pinned Ichigo against the rubble below, poorly, since Ichigo still had movement of his four limbs.

Mayuri sighed and slowly marched towards Ichigo. “You’re refusing treatment? But you were poisoned. Not much, by the look of things, but poisoned indeed.”

Mayuri was stopped by a hand on his wrist. Looking up, the hand belonged to Captain Unohana. “Please,” she said with a smile, “you’ve done a wonderful job, Captain Kurotsuchi, but Squad 4 will take it over from here.”

 _I’m saved!_ Ichigo thought to himself. Shiro and Unohana approached the orangette. Nemu slowly let go of Ichigo, and he was immediately pulled into Shiro’s arms. With a sigh, Ichigo accepted his new seat as Unohana handed Ichigo a pill. “Apologies that I don’t have any water out here, Ichigo, but swallowing this pill shouldn’t be too difficult, right?”

Somehow even that was intimidating. Ichigo nodded and swiftly swallowed the pill. Afterwards, he smiled and said, “Th-There! Easy! Done!”

“Excellent,” Unohana praised before she moved towards Shiro. She looked into his eyes for a moment before murmuring, “Seems like you were unaffected, like Zaraki. Your Spiritual Pressure would have repelled the gas then, or otherwise, you simply weren’t exposed to it.”

Shiro shrugged and watched her leave. He grinned and tightened his hold around Ichigo, watching one by one as goosebumps appeared on his King’s skin.

“Alright then, guess I’m done here,” Kenpachi sighed, sheathing his sword.

Shiro raised a brow and Kenpachi sent him a glare.

“Don’t look at me like that! Our fight isn’t over but it’ll have to be postponed. Besides, you and Ichigo aren’t at full strength, so this completely bores me.”

Ichigo chuckled softly at the angered look on Shiro’s face. Ichigo grabbed his Zanpakuto’s hand to calm him down, feeling the other’s grip tighten in anger. He knew Shiro wasn’t truly mad, but getting called weak? Yeah, that was a sure-fire way to piss him off.

“Hold up Kenpachi!”

Ichigo’s eyes widened. What was Yoruichi doing here?

Yoruichi sent Ichigo a nod, then a grin. She held a wounded Soi Fon in her arms. Yoruichi continued, “Are you sure you want to leave now? Right after I’ve found where they’re keeping the Head Captain?”

* * *

Byakuya and Senbonzakura marched through the cave that was their temporary home so long as they sided with Muramasa. They other Zanpakuto, or those which remained, eyed them as they entered, although they no longer questioned Byakuya Kuchiki’s loyalty.

Senbonzakura glanced at Zangetsu, or rather Juha, with a curious glance. Now that both Byakuya and Senbonzakura thought about it, this being’s reiatsu didn’t match the power they had felt from Ichigo whenever Ichigo called on his Zanpakuto. It was certainly a part of the boy’s overwhelming Spiritual Pressure, but it was not the true core, nor was it present in Ichigo’s Getsuga Tenshou. So, who exactly was this imposter? They weren’t certain.

“Welcome back,” Muramasa greeted, stepping towards the two. All thoughts fled their minds as Muramasa’s piercing gaze landed on the two of them. With a sigh, Muramasa murmured, “It’s as we feared, we still don’t have enough power to defeat the Head Captain, and now we’re down even more power since our numbers have dropped. We’ll have to go with _him_ after all.”


	12. Ichigo, Zangetsu and Juha

Ichigo stood in the garden of the Kuchiki manor. He stared at the pond. The slightest breeze distilled the surface of the water, making it shimmer. He rubbed his eyes, and then the rest of his face.

“What are you thinkin’ about?” Shiro asked, stepping up beside Ichigo.

Ichigo’s fist tightened. Shiro noticed but didn’t do anything, afraid to upset Ichigo more. Ichigo spat, “If only I’d been stronger, then I could’ve…”

“Could’ve what?” Shiro pressed, now sliding his hand over Ichigo’s. Ichigo flinched away, making Shiro frown. “I’m tryna comfort ya here, King! Quit rejecting me!”

Ichigo’s eyes widened and locked onto Shiro’s. The brown softened, and Ichigo looked down in shame. “I’m sorry.”

The beginning of the words ‘shut up’ almost slipped off Shiro’s tongue. Shiro stopped himself. He knew Ichigo needed a shove every now and then. Rukia was a good friend, able to give that shove. However, she didn't always know when Ichigo needed a shove or when Ichigo needed comfort. She meant well, Shiro knew, but Ichigo's type of depression also demanded reassurance.

Shiro decided that a gentler tone would do.

“King,” Shiro murmured, catching his counterpart’s attention. “It’s alright. Things will work themselves out. You’re gonna get Byakuya back. Then you’ll get the Old Man and we’re gonna regain all our powers. You won't fail. You’ll have my support the whole way.”

“Sounds perfect,” Yoruichi spoke, stepping out of the Kuchiki manor. Rukia had let Ichigo, Yoruichi and Shiro stay there while this chaos was still going on in the Seireitei. With a grin, Yoruichi said, “You want to come with us to get the Head Captain back, right? Even if you feel weak, Ichigo, you’ve always been one to improve the most on the battle field.” She nodded at Shiro. “And this is your real Zangetsu, huh? News travels fast. Anyway, I'm sorry I can't help with Bankai training like that time. But I'm certain you can pull it out of Ichigo better than I could."

“I’ll do my best.” Shiro grinned and flashed his smile in Ichigo’s direction. Ichigo gulped, He knew there was some harsh training headed his way once there was time for it.

“Well, we’d better get going,” Yoruichi chuckled. “Kenpachi, Jushiro and Shunsui have gone ahead. They'll use the northern entrance to the cave were Yamamoto is being held. We’re going to use the southern entrance to meet them in the middle. Sound good?”

Ichigo nodded. “Yeah. Let’s do this.”

* * *

“You can sense him, right?” Muramasa asked in a hushed murmur to the only other spirit nearby. , Juha turned to face him. He nodded.

He could easily pick up Ichigo’s Spiritual Pressure at the far reaches of the cave. Ichigo had two others with him, and Juha was thankful that one of them was Zangetsu. “Do you wish for me to fight him?” Juha questioned.

Muramasa sighed. “Kazeshini is already headed in that direction. He is still recovering from his previous fight, but he did not receive any serious injuries. Kazeshini may not be enough to defeat all the presences I sense, and so, you may intervene if you so desire to.”

Juha turned towards Ichigo’s presence. “In other words, do not kill him until his purpose is fulfilled.”

Muramasa smirked and nodded.

Juha could sense Ichigo fighting as he began to march in his direction.

* * *

Ichigo grit his teeth when chains coiled around him, preventing him from moving. As Ichigo began to fall, two of the chains wrapped around his torso turned into arms. Kazeshini's figure grew out of the chains. He placed a blade to Ichigo's throat and growled, “I won’t allow you to get away with your life, Shinigami!”

“Then we’re gonna have a problem!” Shiro snapped. He sliced through Kazeshini’s chains and kicked the spirit away. Ichigo used Flash Step to land atop a pillar of stone. Shiro appeared next to Ichigo. “I’m gonna need yer help ta beat this bastard, King.”

Ichigo placed his hand on the other’s sword and immediately felt a rush of power up his arm. They both raised their arms and together shouted, “Getsuga Tenshou!”

Their Spiritual Pressure mixed into a deep violet. It ripped apart the ground as the attack moved for Kazeshini. The attack struck the Zanpakuto spirit at full force.

Ichigo watched the broken pieces the Zanpakuto fall to the ground. He murmured, “Sorry, Shuhei…”

Shiro sheathed his Zanpakuto and gave Ichigo a genuine smile. “You did what you had to do. Shuhei wouldn’t oppose to it. Now let’s go. I can sense Yamamoto up above us.”

What was waiting at the top for the two of them was nothing short of surprising. A green, triangular barrier was the centre of the large opening. Ichigo approached it, listening to it hum, and upon getting closer, he could see Yamamoto in the middle.

“Head Captain!” Ichigo shouted, reaching for him. Fire poured through the barrier and singed Ichigo’s hand. The Substitute Shinigami jumped backwards with a cry.

Shiro immediately grabbed Ichigo’s wounded hand. He gathered red reiatsu around the wound and it began to bubble. A white goo emerged from Ichigo’s own skin, making Ichigo’s heart skip a beat. He watched the good seal over the wound then his skin returned to its usual tan.

Ichigo gulped and glanced at Shiro. “Instant regeneration? How’d you do that?”

Shiro let go of Ichigo’s hand. “You’re finally trusting me and so my power flows through you with ease. I had to activate your instant regeneration this time. With more practice, you’ll be able to call upon it in the middle of a battle without even thinking about it.”

"I'll try to remember that," Ichigo said. He stored that information for later as he heard footsteps approaching.

“We did not finish our battle, Ichigo,” Juha sounded. "Someone interrupted it."

Shiro narrowed his eyes and spat, “I hope you don’t mean me!”

“No.” Muramasa appeared next to Juha. “I couldn’t allow you to defeat your Zanpakuto and reclaim his soul so early. I still needed him.”

Ichigo frowned. “Old man! Are you still working with this guy? Why?”

“I only did what I thought would keep you safe,” was Juha’s answer.

Ichigo felt as though that would be the answer to many of his questions. Juha wanted to explain everything, but couldn't in front of Muramasa.

“Ichigo Kurosaki,” Muramasa murmured. “I’m glad you could make it. And you brought that Hollow of yours, I see.”

Shiro bit his tongue to supress the comment he wanted to make. It was something like ‘Oi, I have a name too, yanno?’ He decided that it wasn’t the right time to reveal that information. The fact that Muramasa still didn’t know he was the real Zangetsu could be the trump card in this battle.

“What do you say we get down to settling our differences?” Muramasa took out his own sword.

Every memory of the horrible things Muramasa had done flashed through Ichigo’s mind. Muramasa had hurt Rukia. Had torn Ichigo apart, and had done this to hundreds of other Shinigami. Muramasa had tormented and played with Shiro. He even tried to remove Shiro permanently from Ichigo’s soul.

“We’ll end this here? That sounds good to me,” Ichigo growled, reaching for the Zanpakuto on his back. He darted forward and shouted, “Getsuga Tenshou!”

The blue light swallowed Muramasa for only a second before he waved it off. The Zanpakuto narrowed his eyes. “Don’t you understand, Ichigo Kurosaki? That is not enough to defeat me and you cannot move on until you do. So, I want you to truly fight me. Hit me with everything you’ve got.” Muramasa turned his eyes on Juha. “And don’t think I haven’t been aware that your Zanpakuto hasn’t been under my control for quite some time now. Ever since you defeated him, my abilities would not enter his mind. Whatever control I’ve had since has vanished.”

Juha flashed to the left, avoiding a swipe of Muramasa’s sword. He appeared next to Ichigo.

Ichigo glanced at Juha, then at Shiro. “Is he telling the truth?”

Shiro felt Juha reconnect with Ichigo’s Inner World. “There’s not a trace of Muramasa’s Spiritual Pressure on him.” With a growl, Shiro added, “Zangetsu is under your control again, King.”

Ichigo shook his head. “Zangetsu,” he addressed the both of them, “is my partner, not under my control. A King is nothing without his horse.”

Shiro snorted and took out his Zanpakuto. “Ya got tha’ right.”

Ichigo closed his eyes and drew on Shiro and Juha’s power, giving them his own in return. He felt all the fake barriers shatter. This meant that he lost his fake Bankai, but at the very least he had both spirits by his side again.

“Muramasa!” Ichigo shouted, “You’re finished!”

A small grin tugged at Muramasa’s lips which went unnoticed by the three others in the room. Ichigo and Shiro were the first to move, appearing on either side of Muramasa. They released a Getsuga each then flashed back to avoid each other’s attacks. Muramasa emerged unharmed.

Ichigo felt Juha move next. He wasn’t entirely sure how he knew, but he could tell what Juha’s plan was before he had even gone through with it. The same thing happened with Shiro. While Juha was distracting Muramasa, Ichigo and Shiro appeared behind him. Muramasa vanished and Ichigo and Shiro immediately paused in their attack. Ichigo could sense Shiro’s intent to chase Muramasa. Ichigo placed a hand on Shiro’s shoulder, unwilling to let him rush in and make a fatal mistake.

Muramasa chuckled from his new position on the opposite side of the cave. “Is that really it? Come now, Ichigo Kurosaki, I want you to hit me with everything you’ve got. Do not hold back! Show me the true extent of your Getsuga Tenshou.”

Ichigo could feel Shiro’s eagerness and Juha’s suspicion.

“What are you thinking, old man?” Ichigo asked softly.

Juha’s expression didn’t change nor did his eyes leave Muramasa. “My time under his control has been completely erased from my memories, and he hardly spoke to me while I was here. I don’t know what he’s planning, but Ichigo, have you noticed how there are no others in here?”

Ichigo glanced from side to side. “Yeah. My friends are busy fighting the other Zanpakuto.”

Juha frowned. “He separated you from your allies and now he’s trying to get you to attack him with your Getsuga Tenshou. I believe this is a trap.”

“So?” Shiro questioned, “If it is a trap then it’s a pretty stupid one! We can kick his ass and break outta here no problem. With the Head Captain.”

Ichigo nodded. “We have to put all our strength into this attack. He won’t be able to block it.”

Juha nodded as well. “I’m with you, Ichigo.”

Shiro placed a hand on Ichigo’s shoulder. He felt their power mingle again. Juha’s as well once he placed his hand on Ichigo’s other shoulder. Ichigo took a deep breath and raised his sword, gathering as much reiatsu as he could. “Getsuga…”

“No, don’t Ichigo!”

“Tenshou!”

Yoruichi’s warning came too late as the attack raged across the cave. Muramasa grinned and flashed out of the way.

Brown eyes widened once he realized his mistake. The attack crashed into Yamamoto's prison. An explosion of reiatsu filled the cave. Ichigo felt his footing slip from the shock wave of the attack. Juha and Shiro slid an arm each under one of Ichigo’s to keep their master from flying away. Ichigo felt his strength leave him as the light faded.

“Damn it,” Yoruichi muttered. “I didn’t get here in time.”

Ichigo turned towards her, “In time for what?”

The green barrier began to crack. It wasn’t long before it shattered.

Shunsui and Jushiro appeared. With a frown, Jushiro explained, “It took us too long to realize it as well. Muramasa’s true intentions were to lure you here and use your greatest attack to shatter the barrier around the Head Captain.”

“The… barrier? Isn’t that thing a prison?” Ichigo questioned. He didn’t have to get an answer. The worried looks on their faces were enough to tell him ‘no’. “So, you mean… this whole time that thing has been protecting him? And I played right into Muramasa’s hands?”

“And you did so admirably,” Muramasa mocked, slowly clapping his hands. “Thank you, Ichigo Kurosaki, for providing me with Ryujin Jakka.”

“Do not falter even if it appears that the enemy has the upper hand!” A deep, aged voice spoke. Yamamoto flashed across the cave, appearing near Yoruichi. “It is true. Muramasa has been relentlessly trying to gain access to my subconscious.”

Orange brows knitted together before Ichigo asked, “You mean your Inner World?”

“Yes,” Muramasa answered instead. “You see, Ichigo, the first Shinigami I sought after was Yamamoto. As soon as I found him, he isolated himself inside a barrier and blocked his mind from me. So, I then released many Zanpakuto from their Shinigami to cause a distraction. Then, I found you. I knew immediately that you possessed the power I needed to break Yamamoto out of his barrier. I made certain that you thought he was being held against his will. I was worried for a moment that your Zanpakuto had caught on to my plans, but it all worked out in the end anyway. I owe you a lot, Ichigo Kurosaki.”

Ichigo grit his teeth and stepped forward. “Screw you, you bastard!”

Shiro yanked Ichigo back, a pleading look in his eyes. It was then that Ichigo noticed their battle had taken a toll on his Zanpakuto as well. Zangetsu was trying to hide it, but Ichigo could see the uneasy rising and falling of his chest.

Fire erupted around Muramasa, melting a hole through the roof of the cave and all the way up. Ichigo’s eyes widened as fire shot at him from all directions. Zangetsu wrapped himself around Ichigo, shielding him from the hot blast. Ichigo saw something he didn’t think possible... Zangetsu’s face scrunched up in pain and he released a horrible, echoic scream.


	13. Consumed by the Flames

Ichigo caught Shiro as the fire faded.

Shunsui, Jushiro and Yamamoto took off after Muramasa. Yoruichi turned to Juha. “Take care of them.”

Juha nodded and turned his attention to Shiro and Ichigo. Yoruichi used Flash Step to catch up with the other Captains.

Ichigo trembled as he inspected Shiro’s wound. “Y-Your instant regeneration… can’t you use it?”

“We used too much… power,” Shiro replied, pain in his voice. “You need the rest to defend yourself from Muramasa.”

“Stop protecting me! You keep getting hurt!” Ichigo shouted.

Shiro snorted and leaned against his master’s chest. Being close to Ichigo felt so nice. “Idiot, ain’t this what ya always do for other people? Yer being kinda hypocritical.” Shiro’s voice turned soft. “Let me take the hit for a change. You deserve to protection too.”

Ichigo shook his head. “I don’t! You know I don’t! Look at what I’ve done! Look at the mess I always make, I…” His voice trailed off into his panting.

Juha knelt next to them both. “Ichigo, this is our job, to keep you safe.”

Ichigo shot a glare at Juha, unable to hold back his anger or feelings of betrayal any longer. The look didn't faze Juha. He expected this reaction from Ichigo sooner or later.

Though he didn’t expect the reason why Ichigo was angry. “I’m the protector,” Ichigo snapped. “I should be keeping you safe, and I can’t even do that.”

Shiro tugged on Ichigo’s Shihakusho to get his attention. “He’s right, King. And I know you don’t believe me. I know, ever since yer mom died, you’ve been holding onto this idea that you don’t deserve care or love. That isn’t true. Think of everything ya’ve done for everyone else. Think of how it must make them feel that you demand they do nothing for ya in return. All those times someone told to sit on the sidelines and watch, remember how that made you feel. Ain’t that the same shitty feeling yer forcing on yer friends?”

Ichigo scowled and bit his lip. He didn’t want to admit it but Shiro was right.

Shiro hugged Ichigo, letting the other hide his face in his chest. Shiro smiled and pet the back of Ichigo’s head.

Juha knew neither Shiro nor Ichigo knew what they were feeling. The level of trust Ichigo displayed and the amount of care Shiro was showing made Juha smile. He was proud of them both. They had overcome their differences and made their bond ever stronger. It would be impossible for Muramasa to truly get between them now. Juha sighed, he only wished he could repair his own bond with Ichigo. Perhaps Ichigo would one day understand the importance of what he was about to say. “I hate to interrupt this moment, but I must speak now.” Juha looked into his master’s face, red and puffy from hidden tears. Juha frowned then continued, “You know that I am not the real Zangetsu. The power you’ve been using as your Zanpakuto up until this moment is not true either.” Juha extended his hands. “May I see both of your swords?”

Ichigo glanced at Shiro, who nodded. Ichigo removed the Zanpakuto from his back. Shiro did the same, both placing their swords in Juha’s hands.

The swords began to glow blue. The reiatsu that gathered seemed to harden like a shell. It shattered, revealing a shimmering golden reiatsu beneath. Ichigo shivered. A sudden awareness washed over him, like when you finally start to move your leg around after it’s been numb for a while. The pins and needles were the same, and the sensation remained until the glowing faded.

“This is the true form of your Zanpakuto,” Juha explained. “I’ve been suppressing it – hoping you would choose not to become a Shinigami. I had hoped you would choose the path where you would not get harmed. I see now the path you wish to take to protect others… you need all of your power.”

Ichigo blinked at the explanation. Juha placed two swords in his hands, and another two in Shiro’s. “So, wait… Zangetsu’s true form has two swords?”

“Ya have two spirits, don’cha?” Shiro added. He nudged Ichigo’s arm. “Trust yer instincts, King, and you’ll figure out how to use both.”

Ichigo huffed. “Wait... I’m still confused.” He turned to Juha. “If you’re not Zangetsu, but you’re part of my power, then who are you?”

Juha frowned. “I don’t-”

“Ichigo, do ya trust me?” Shiro asked.

The King blinked. “Well, I… yeah.”

“Then can ya trust me when I saw all he wants is to keep ya safe? He isn’t your enemy, Ichigo,” Shiro murmured. Ichigo nodded and stepped closer to Shiro. He placed both swords in one hand so he could touch Shiro’s shoulder with the other. Shiro’s wounds still looked bad.

“After everything…” Juha murmured. “Zangetsu, you’d stand up for me?”

Shiro grinned. “I fuckin’ hate what ya did, but I know why ya did it. We’d do anything ta keep Ichigo alive, ain’t that right?”

Ichigo watched Juha nod. Ichigo smiled. “Alright. I’ll make the same deal with you that I did with my dad. When you’re ready to explain, I’ll listen.”

Juha bowed his head. The threads of his coat began to fade. “Muramasa’s power had little effect on me… as such, I’ve been using my own power to keep my form stable. I will return to your soul now, Ichigo, so I will no longer drain your power.”

Ichigo nodded. As Juha faded, Shiro slung his arm around Ichigo. “Are you ready to continue this fight, King?”

Ichigo scowled at him. “Only after you heal yourself!”

Shiro chuckled. “Jeez, yes your highness.”

Ichigo felt a slight tug on their collective power. He leaned in to inspect Shiro’s back, noticing his wounds had sealed up into faint scars. He nodded in satisfaction then glanced up at the hole in the roof of the cave. Shiro placed his larger sword on his back and the smaller blade at his hip. Ichigo copied his movements. Then the two of them flashed up through the hole. They moved towards blue sky. Then fire blocked their path.

“Damn it!” Ichigo cursed, jumping out of the way just in time. “That was close!”

“It won’t be easy getting out of here,” Shunsui noted, eyes never leaving the dome of fire surrounding them. Ichigo and Shiro appeared next to the captains, their respective Zanpakuto, and Yoruichi. It seemed Ryujin Jakka's flames had them trapped for the time being.

“We’ll need a plan,” Yoruichi decided. She turned to Yamamoto, “Head Captain, do you have any idea where Muramasa has headed?”

Yamamoto turned away from Ichigo. “He’s gone to an enriched spiritual zone within the world of the living. To Karakura Town.”

Ichigo’s eyes widened. Everyone felt anger shift in his spiritual pressure as he questioned, “He’s gone where!?”

Yamamoto sighed. “What Muramasa seeks is within Karakura town. It is likely he left to go there the moment we became trapped.”

“Are you sure!?” Ichigo stepped closer to the Head Captain, attempting to get a view of his face so he could read his expression. “What does Muramasa want with Karakura town!?”

“Ichigo, move!” Yoruichi shouted. Ichigo spun around right as Shiro grabbed him. He turned wide eyes on Shiro, who still seemed to be in pain from the last strike he’d saved Ichigo from. With a frown, Ichigo traced the scars on Shiro’s back. He recalled the time at the Shiba manor when he’d practiced pushing his Spiritual Pressure into a ball. Ichigo took a deep breath and channeled his power into his fingertips.

“K-King, what’re ya doing!?” Shiro cried as a rush of power surged through him. He felt his limbs pulse with an almost pleasurable sense of strength. A soft tingle replaced the pain once his instant regeneration activated. Glowing golden orbs locked onto relieved brown. “Ya… healed me? What fer?”

Ichigo smiled, “You would do the same for me.”

“Be careful,” Yoruichi spoke, her eyes analyzing the flames. “We have to stay on guard. Now isn’t the time to lose yourself to rage or concern, Ichigo.”

The orangette nodded. “I got it.” He scanned the cave and the flames. Ryujin Jakka sealed the hole the moment he noticed their entrance. The fire had completely closed them in. Then Ichigo felt a sudden spike in Kenpachi Zaraki’s Spiritual Pressure. He finished fighting and was on his way up.

“I’ve made my decision,” Yamamoto spoke. His eyes narrowed on Ichigo. “Substitute Shinigami, you and your Zanpakuto have a duty to protect Karakura town. We will do everything in our power to ensure you get there on time. Our next actions must ensure that you get out of here so you can pursue Muramasa and put an end to his plans.”

Shunsui bowed his head. “And what are his plans, Head Captain?”

“I am certain he wishes to break the seal that keeps his master locked up in Karakura town.”

Ichigo’s eyes widened. He felt Shiro’s hand in his and he gripped it tight. He wanted to scream and throw things and break stuff, but he had to remain calm.

“Koga once used Muramasa to start a rebellion against the Seireitei. When this happened, he caught us off guard. Many Shinigami lost their lives in that war, but we managed to seal Koga away.”

“And this seal is within Karakura town?” Jushiro asked, though it was more a statement than a question. With a frown, he also added, “And so, when Muramasa entered your mind, he discovered how to unlock this seal. Is that correct?”

Yamamoto nodded once. Ichigo felt guilt wash over him once again. He gritted his teeth. “This is my fault…” Shiro’s reiatsu wrapped around Ichigo, comforting him.

* * *

 

Muramasa stumbled as he approached his master's seal. He felt blood drip from his lips.

“E-Excuse me?” Came a woman’s voice. “Are you hurt?”

Muramasa turned around to face with a woman with long, strawberry-blonde hair. He narrowed his eyes. He recognized this girl, but from where? He extended his hand, immediately seizing the girl’s mind. “You… You are very familiar, girl. Tell me who you are.”

Her eyes dulled as if she was unaware she was speaking, “My name is Orihime Inoue.”

Muramasa’s eyes widened. Of course! This was one of the Substitute Shinigami’s friends!

He felt blood continue to poor from his lips. With a cough, he stumbled to the ground. He lost control of the girl. “No…” He groaned, “Not now. Please, I’m so close…”

Orihime watched him fall. With a stutter, she summoned her healing field and began to help this stranger. That’s what Ichigo would do, right?

* * *

Ichigo roared as he pushed through the flames. The opening closed in on him and forced him back into the centre of the fire. He cursed in pain as he hit the ground. Tears taunted him at the edges of his eyes. “Damn it!” Ichigo punched the ground. “If Muramasa breaks the seal and destroys Karakura town… it’ll be all my fault!”

Shiro frowned. “It's not going to happen.”

Ichigo shook his head and ignored him. “We have to try once more! One more push and that should do it, Zangetsu. We’ll get through these flames and defeat Muramasa!”

Ichigo began to gather reiatsu onto his sword and Shiro did the same. Ichigo took off before anyone else had the chance to help him. Shiro gritted his teeth and followed him. Ichigo growled and released his Getsuga. It sliced through the fire only for a moment, and that’s when Zangetsu added his to the mix. Together, they pushed back the flames and broke free.

Their victory was short lived. Fire surrounded Ichigo and Zangetsu on all sides, each of them isolated from each other. Zangetsu immediately extended his senses. He had to make certain his King was all right.

Ichigo suddenly felt cold. The flames turned blue, then turned into ice. The ice shattered to reveal Toshiro and Hyorinmaru. Ichigo turned towards the other fire roaring beside him. He was about to pursue Zangetsu when he heard a loud roar.

“Move!” Toshiro shouted. Not a moment later, white and red light spread across the land. As it faded, so did the flames. Zangetsu stood in the smoke with his finger pointed. He had released a Cero.

Shiro appeared next to Ichigo, immediately investigating his body for any wounds. When he found none, Shiro flashed Ichigo a smile. Ichigo rolled his eyes. Shiro slid his arm around Ichigo's waist, pulling him closer. His fingers curled around Ichigo's side.

Ichigo glanced at Toshiro. “Can you get the Head Captain and the others out?”

Toshiro nodded and opened his mouth, but Yamamoto's voice cut him off. Even from within the fire, the Captain's voice still boomed. “Captain Hitsugaya, aid Ichigo Kurosaki and his Zanpakuto before you worry about us. The Substitute Shinigami feels responsible for Muramasa. He must be the one to correct his mistake!”

Ichigo’s eyes widened. Fire crept towards them again. Toshiro raised his sword. “Bankai!”


	14. VS Muramasa Part 1

“Daiguren Hyorinmaru!” Toshiro shouted, ice wrapping around him. Two ice wings extended from his back, and the same happened with his Zanpakuto spirit. The flames began to coil and lash out at Ichigo. Toshiro fended them off.

Then, together with his Zanpakuto, Toshiro released a large ice dragon which began to freeze the flames around himself and Ichigo. “Now’s your chance! Get going!”

Ichigo smiled. “Thanks Toshiro.”

Shiro appeared beside Ichigo with a smile. They both vanished just as the fire began to crack through the ice. Fire surrounded Toshiro and forced him inside the circle of flames along with the other Captains.

Yamamoto felt Ichigo’s reiatsu vanish from his senses.

Jushiro sighed. “Good luck, Ichigo.”

* * *

Fortunately for Ichigo, Rukia managed to catch up with him on his way back to the Soul Society. With little effort, she opened a Senkaimon. Kisuke was waiting for them on the other side. Lines and their shadows were thick on Kisuke’s face. Ichigo gulped – he couldn’t remember a time where Kisuke looked more serious.

“Chad, Uryu and Orihime are already fighting Muramasa. Follow me. I’ll lead you to them.”

Ichigo nodded. Shiro glanced with worry at his master. Something didn’t feel right within Ichigo. Shiro could sense rain within Ichigo’s Inner World. He could just imagine Juha getting soaked.

When they arrived at the battle scene, it was to a rather unpleasant sight. Blood dripped down Uryu’s arm. Orihime used a tree as support, her left leg battered. She held out one hand to keep a barrier up between her and Muramasa, while also holding up her healing barrier around Chad.

“Orihime!” Ichigo called, just as Muramasa shattered her barrier.

Rukia called upon her Shikai and replaced Orihime’s barrier with a pillar of ice. Uryu sat up off the ground, blood soaking through his white Quincy garments. The gash was light but large. Ichigo grit his teeth and rushed in to help his friend while Rukia distracted Muramasa.

“Uryu, are you alright!?” Ichigo questioned.

With a grunt, Uryu replied, “Yeah, Senbonzakura only grazed me, I’ll be fine.” His eyes turned to Shiro. “Is that…”

Orihime’s gasp made Ichigo flinch. She stood with one hand over her mouth, eyes locked on Shiro. The fear on her face made memories flicker across Ichigo’s vision that he’d tried to supress. His fight with Grimmjow… His fight with Ulquiorra…

“It’s alright, Orihime,” he tried to reassure her. “He won’t hurt you.”

“GAH!” Rukia screamed as she was flung harshly into a tree. She spat blood and it was a moment before she could recover the air that had left her lungs.

Ichigo glanced at Rukia then at the culprit: Muramasa. Muramasa had turned his back on Rukia and had taken off across the swamp. There was a tree in the centre of the water. With a deep scowl, Ichigo growled, “Orihime, think you can heal the others!? Muramasa is mine!”

“Not so fast!” Senbonzakura cried, sending an array of pink petals in Ichigo’s direction. With a quick slash, Shiro sent the petals back where they came from.

Uryu appeared next to Ichigo. His wound has stopped bleeding for the moment. “Better get going, Ichigo. I can handle this one myself!”

Ichigo nodded. “Thanks, Uryu. Be careful.” He took off across the lake after Muramasa.

Shiro grit his teeth. He would follow if not for Byakuya. They crossed swords when ice surrounded them.

Rukia locked her eyes on Shiro. “Byakuya is my brother, and my responsibility. Go help Ichigo. He needs you.”

“Don’t gotta tell me twice,” Shiro replied before following Ichigo’s trail.

A shockwave surrounded Ichigo and Shiro as they landed on the small island. The tree shattered like glass to reveal a man underneath it. He was scrawny and his skin had turned grey from the years he’d been concealed. His hair was oily and messy, a dull grey as well.

“It’s his master,” Shiro decided.

Ichigo nodded. “Damn it,” the orangette cursed. “We were too slow.”

“Master!” Muramasa cried, tears of joy mingling with blood down his cheeks. “It’s been so long, and finally my greatest wish has been granted. I get to see you again. Together we can complete the task we started all those years ago…”

Slowly, green eyes opened. They adjusted to the scenery around him. What sun there might’ve been before was now erased by clouds. Koga’s voice was low, muffled but not quiet. He spoke like someone with a sore throat. “Muramasa…”

Ichigo’s eyes widened as Koga’s sword appeared through Muramasa’s back.

“What the hell!?” Ichigo shouted, watching Muramasa fall. “How could you do that to your Zanpakuto after he’s been working so hard to see you again!? Don’t you know how much he cared about you!? He may have done some horrible things… but he loved you.” Ichigo gulped as his own words sunk in. He avoided looking at Shiro, even though he desperately wanted to.

Koga turned to face Ichigo, no remorse in his eyes. “Be silent, you fool. You were not there the day Muramasa betrayed me. The day that he refused to take orders from me and as a result I was locked away!” Koga kicked Muramasa and he rolled down the hill towards the swampy water at the bottom. Narrowed green eyes locked on Ichigo. “He never answered me when I called for him. I called again and again, and yet no answer came.”

Muramasa reached towards Koga. “How can that be? I… never heard you call. Not even once.”

Shiro shivered. He knew what that was like, but Ichigo wasn’t at fault for being unable to hear him. Juha had come between them. He had sealed Shiro in another world, a warped version of Ichigo’s own. Shiro had awoken without any knowledge of who he was and yet he still had his instincts… his first ever instinct… to protect Ichigo.

“Please, Master, you must believe me!” Muramasa cried. “I didn’t hear your voice at all, and when I finally realized you had been sealed away, I did everything I could to free you. Everything.”

Koga marched towards Muramasa. He stepped on the other’s wound. “If you had been there for me when I needed you then I never would have been sealed away in the first place!”

Muramasa screamed and grasped his Master’s ankle. “Please, Koga! Aren’t we of one body, and one spirit? I would do anything for you!”

“One spirit?” Koga scoffed. He slowly raised his arm to deal the final blow to his Zanpakuto. “To me, you’ve never been anything more than a sword. A mere tool. And a tool shouldn’t be so conceited!”

Rage boiled beneath Ichigo’s skin. He blocked Koga’s attack, his Spiritual Pressure knocking the other backwards. Ichigo growled, “You bastard!”

“Ichigo Kurosaki,” sounded another’s voice. Ichigo felt a hand on his shoulder and he turned to see Byakuya Kuchiki. “Allow me to handle this.”

The look in Byakuya’s eyes made Ichigo surrender immediately. He stepped away from Byakuya and back to Shiro’s side. Byakuya struck Koga’s sword with enough force to send Koga flying across the swamp and into a clearing on the other side of a small forest.

Ichigo heard footsteps and turned to see Rukia. She smiled, “Byakuya’s come back, Ichigo. He and Senbonzakura were never really against us. They knew the only way to stop this mess was to pretend to follow Muramasa until he found Koga. They’re going to finish Koga off… because, well, he’s a member of the Kuchiki clan.”

Ichigo blinked and Shiro stepped forward. “Tha’ makes sense. Whenever I fought wi’ Senbonzakura, I never felt as though he actually wanted ta kill me. An’ Byakuya is… well, Byakuya.”

Ichigo chuckled and Rukia gave him a questioning stare. “You’re not mad at him?”

The young Kurosaki shook his head. “Why would I be mad? Byakuya lied for a bit, yes, but he did it to protect us. He had to play the enemy for a little, but he never really hurt us. And now he’s back on our side, stronger than ever, and has the upper hand on the enemy. I trust him.”

Shiro smiled at Ichigo and the Substitute Shinigami returned the smile.

Ichigo’s happiness faded as butterflies took over his stomach. He stared down at his feet. “Zangetsu, I…”

“Don’ sweat it,” Shiro cut him off. He pulled his master into a hug. Feeling Ichigo against him sent relief flooding through Shiro’s veins. He felt as though every problem in the world was insignificant so long as Ichigo was by his side.

Muramasa pushed himself off the ground, wobbling to his feet. He turned a crooked grin at Ichigo. “Did you say… Zangetsu?”

Ichigo’s breath hitched. “M-Muramasa, leave him alone!” He cried as Muramasa flicked his wrist and forced Shiro away from Ichigo. Ichigo found himself suddenly unable to move. He glared at Muramasa as the other approached Shiro.

Rukia frowned. She was in the same position as Ichigo, unable to move. Her eyes widened as a red Spiritual Pressure began to gather around Muramasa. “I-Ichigo!” She shouted, getting the other’s attention. “Watch out! Muramasa’s despair is so great that he can no longer control his actions! He’s consumed by it!”

Ichigo gulped. “He’s… Hollowfying.”

Muramasa released a horrible scream. His Spiritual Pressure surrounded everyone. Ichigo grit his teeth and braced himself against the raw power. He thought about Shiro and how Ichigo rejecting him for so long must’ve made him feel horrible. No wonder Shiro had lashed out at him when they finally fought. Shiro’s despair had caused him to nearly destroy Ichigo’s friends and Ichigo himself.

“KOGA!” Muramasa screamed in agony.

Ichigo felt Muramasa’s grip slip and he and Shiro broke free. They appeared above a sea of red reiatsu.

Large hands clawed through this reiatsu, reality itself seeming to shatter as Hollow after Hollow pulled its way into the World of the Living.

Rukia yelped as she avoided a Menos, and then joined Ichigo and Shiro high above the chaos. Byakuya, Senbonzakura and Koga had been forced up higher as well.

When he saw a Hollow reaching for Byakuya, Ichigo immediately sent a Getsuga to cut it in half. Ichigo appeared beside Byakuya, receiving a concerned look from the Head of the Kuchiki Clan.

“Don’t worry,” Ichigo reassured. “I get why you did it now. You have to preserve the Kuchiki honour. So, how about you defeat Koga while we handle Muramasa?”

Byakuya nodded and that was all Ichigo needed to join up with Shiro again and fight off the Hollows.

“Get out of my way!” Uryu shouted. Shiro and Ichigo vanished just as an array of arrows were sent in their direction. Hundreds of Hollows began to vanish. Ichigo landed next to the Quincy, who straightened his glasses as he muttered, “No offence Ichigo, but it would seem my arrows might be more effective against these Hollows than your single sword.”

Shiro chuckled. “Well, I suppose in a situation like this, it can certainly come in handy.”

Uryu narrowed his eyes at Shiro. “Are you calling me a minor convenience!?”

Shiro snorted and gave him a grin. Ichigo rolled his eyes. “Now isn’t the time for bickering…”

“Like you’re one to talk,” Rukia commented before averting her eyes. Ichigo sent her a glare as she giggled.

Rukia glanced across the field at the large, black dome that had surrounded her brother and Koga. Ichigo smiled at her, “Are you nervous for Byakuya?”

She nodded. “I am.”

“Don’t be. I’ve seen that technique first hand.” Ichigo glanced at the scar on his hand. He got that one when Shiro took over and caught Byakuya’s blade. Ichigo turned his smile back to Rukia. “Koga doesn’t stand a chance against your brother and Senbonzakura.”

Chad and Orihime approached Ichigo. Orihime gave Ichigo a small smile. “We can take care of these Hollows, Ichigo. You have to put a stop to Muramasa… he’s suffering.”

Ichigo’s expression softened. “Yeah, don’t worry, I’ll do it.”

Orihime nodded before her eyes focused on behind Ichigo. They spun around in time to see her shield form and block a Cero. It vaporized as it hit her shield. Once it was gone, Orihime let her shield fade and Shiro stepped forward.

“Ya call tha’ a Cero?” Shiro grinned and pointed his finger towards the Hollows. There was a pulse before his own Cero blasted through the centre of the large group of Hollows. He chuckled as he watched the Menos vanish. “Now _tha’s_ a Cero.”

“Shut up, Zangetsu!” Ichigo scolded playfully. He grabbed Shiro’s hand and started running. “You’ve just cleared us a path! Let’s get moving!”

“Che. You got it!”

“I’ll cover you!” Uryu called.

“Good luck, Ichigo!” Orihime shouted.

Ichigo held out a thumbs-up just before he and Shiro vanished.

* * *

“Gah!” Koga cried. “How do you have so much power!?”

Senbonzakura appeared next to Byakuya. “Because our souls are in harmony. Your pride caused you to abandon your Zanpakuto, and because of that, you will both lose.”

“Shut up! You don’t know anything!” Koga growled and raised his arm. Reiatsu gathered at his fingertips. “I am powerful enough on my own! Everyone abandoned me. They were fearful of my power because they knew I would be able to rise up and take control of this world right from under their noses. Power is what defines the state of the world. I’m going to use mine so that I can rule a world where I can finally live in peace!”

Byakuya sighed and closed his eyes. He knew Senbonzakura wouldn’t allow Koga to touch him. He spoke, “I’ve met many Shinigami with ideology like yours. All of them tumbled under the will of one man – the same man that now fights your abandoned Zanpakuto. He taught me that when you fight for others and they fight alongside you, then someone who only fights for himself and his pride stands no chance. Today, I have decided to fight for the honour of the Kuchiki clan, and your selfishness shall not be enough to defeat me.”


	15. VS Muramasa Part 2

It was easy for Rukia to pick up the reiatsu of her brother fighting Koga. The usage of her brother’s ultimate technique had her worried, but the sudden drop in Byakuya’s spiritual pressure had her almost scared.

 _No,_ she thought, _I mustn’t let my heart waver. I know he is still alive. I know my brother would not lose._

Half a kilometre away, Byakuya watched his enemy fall. Red stained the grass as Koga’s body collapsed to the ground. Byakuya stumbled, his legs almost giving out, but then Senbonzakura caught him.

“He is finished,” Byakuya noted.

Senbonzakura nodded. “And you need rest.”

Byakuya nodded as he was lowered to the ground.

Senbonzakura continued. “You were stronger than he was. He was the opposite of you. You willingly allowed yourself to be branded a traitor, and would face the consequences of your actions before a trial without regrets or resistance. Now that you’ve defeated him, you can hold your head high in front of your peers and become restored at the Nobleman you are.”

Byakuya sighed and leaned back against the hill. “Senbonzakura, you talk too much.”

* * *

 

Ichigo placed his hand on Shiro’s chest. “Hold it!”

Gold eyes widened and turned on Ichigo. Shiro then followed Ichigo’s gaze to the sky. About a hundred metres above them was a black circle, functioning more like a black hole as it began to absorb the nearby Hollows.

Ichigo narrowed his eyes. “What’s going on up there?”

“His despair is absorbing the Hollows once more,” Shiro answered. He felt a lump in his throat, but of course would never admit the slightest hint of fear he was feeling. Shiro glanced at Ichigo. They were both too close. The black hole could easily pull them in from this distance.

Just as Shiro began to feel a tug, a yellow barrier appeared. He sensed Orihime’s presence block out the ominous threat of the black hole. Her barrier would be just enough to keep him and Ichigo from being pulled in.

The black hole became smaller but more aggressive after each Hollow it absorbed. The final Hollow barely fit, but managed to squeeze in nonetheless. There was a crack as everything went still. Shiro took the opportunity to grab Ichigo’s hand and yank him another hundred metres away from the black sphere, back to where Ichigo’s friends were and where Ichigo would be safe.

Rukia sighed, a somewhat relieved sound. “Now that Koga has been defeated, Muramasa needed to consume Hollows again and become one with them to sustain his existence. He was doing the same before, but I think his personality has been completely overwritten by the Hollows this time.”

“Without his master, his will to live is gone,” Orihime murmured.

They all flinched as a roar cracked through the air. The black hole warped into different shapes, eventually settling on a human-like form. Colours soon appeared from the blackness. Ichigo recognized the coat the new being wore to be the same as Muramasa’s, but the being had a white mask that covered its whole head, and a deep hole through its chest.

“He’s become an Arrancar,” Uryu said. Ichigo noticed the worry lines across his friend’s face.

Shiro suddenly fell to his knees. “King… I can hear him…”

Ichigo whipped around to look at Shiro. “Don’t listen to him!”

Shiro grabbed his head and grunted in pain. “He’s trying to come between us, Ichigo. Don’t let him, please!”

Ichigo suddenly felt cold from the fear in his Zanpakuto’s voice. Ichigo blinked and before he could process the change of scenery, he found himself in his Inner World. He glanced from side to side. There were two spirits he didn’t recognize and there was Muramasa standing between them.

“My, my…” Muramasa taunted. “So many secrets within your head, Ichigo, but I can finally read them all. You’re not very good at blocking people out, are you? Then again, these secrets may have been kept from even you.”

Ichigo gritted his teeth together. “What are you talking about!?”

Muramasa chuckled and turned his head towards the first spirit. It was a young man with long grey hair pulled back in a small ponytail by a black ribbon. His eyes were a piercing blue, as though the sky itself had been trapped in his eyes. Shiro’s were the exact opposite, Ichigo found himself thinking.

“This is your true Zanpakuto, Ichigo Kurosaki. This is Zangetsu.”

“That is false!” the man protested. “I am not Zangetsu! _We_ are!”

“Ah yes,” Muramasa hummed. “The Hollow.” He turned his attention to the other spirit. Ichigo flinched at what greeted him. A black Hollow turned to him. It had a white mask and a Hollow hole which appeared to be crudely filled in. Ichigo gulped at the jagged horns and sharp teeth this creature had, but also at the complete lack of intelligent thought. He was certain that this creature would devour him if it weren’t for Muramasa’s strings holding it down.

Speaking of Muramasa, if Ichigo could move he’d like to wipe that smug grin off the other’s face.

Muramasa chuckled. “Here are the true manifestations of your powers, Ichigo. Together, they formed that half-Hollow Zanpakuto you were fighting alongside before.”

“I don’t understand…” Ichigo shook his head. “Where is Zangetsu?”

“Don’t listen to him, Master!” the so-dubbed Zangetsu cried. “This Hollow… his name is White, or Shiro. And I am… or rather, I was, Zangetsu. We are supposed to be one. That is the only way your soul achieves stability. Otherwise, I am the power you’ve inherited from your father, and White is…” Zangetsu frowned. “I am certain your father would’ve rather you heard this from him, but-”

“Wait.” Ichigo recalled when his dad saved him from Aizen, the first time he found out about his Shinigami heritage. He remembered the scared and unprepared look in his dad’s eyes. Ichigo had told Isshin not to worry about telling him everything at once, to wait until he was ready. It was a decision Ichigo was still willing to stand by. So, Ichigo nodded, “It’s okay. I think I know enough now, Dad will tell me the rest when I’m ready to hear it.”

Muramasa approached White. “You won’t live that long. Your power shall be mine, Ichigo, and I shall create a new world on my own!”

Ichigo tried to stand and ended up screaming in pain instead. He gazed at his reflection on the skyscraper below. There were white arms wrapped around him again. He growled and forced his left leg in front of him.

Muramasa paused on his way to White. “What are you doing?”

Ichigo growled out his pain and pushed as hard as he could with his legs. He managed to stand.

“That’s not possible!”

Ichigo took a step forward. The glass beneath his feet shattered from the force, but so did a few of the arms surrounding him. Ichigo panted. “This is my world. They are a part of me. I won’t let you take them from me.”

Muramasa took a small step away from Ichigo.

Ichigo fought to free his arms. In a flash of white light, Muramasa’s hold shattered. Ichigo stretched out his arms and opened one hand. In that hand a sword began to form. White and Zangetsu’s forms faded into light, travelling to Ichigo’s hand.

“It’s not possible…”

Ichigo narrowed his eyes, now swirling blue. “Leave.”

Muramasa opened his mouth to speak, but before he could, he shattered from Ichigo’s inner world in a burst of green light.

Ichigo held his sword close to his side. He blinked, and returned to the outer world. Shiro was leaning against his side. Ichigo smiled and hugged Shiro close.

“Watch out!” Rukia cried.

Ichigo grabbed Shiro, but before he could move, a Hollowfied Muramasa sent a Cero in their direction. Pink petals arrived in time to block it. Ichigo heard Rukia sigh in relief as her brother appeared next to them.

Shiro frowned. “Muramasa has become a pure Hollow… Only we can release a Cero.”

“You’re not him,” Ichigo quickly said. Shiro avoided his gaze. Ichigo continued, “I know you’re a Hollow, a real one, but you’re also my Zanpakuto. That makes me Hollow too. But it doesn’t matter, because bottom line, you’re still you and I’m still me.”

Byakuya stumbled and Senbonzakura caught him once again. Orihime readied her healing barrier but stopped when she heard Muramasa scream. She clenched her fist before rushing towards the Hollowfied Zanpakuto. “Stop this! You don’t have to fight anymore. I’m sorry, but the master you’re looking for no longer exists, Muramasa. The battle is over and you can rest in peace.”

“Orihime!” Rukia cried, chasing after her. “It’s no use. He’s been completely consumed by the Hollows he absorbed.”

“Not true!” Orihime shook her head, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. “He’s still in there. He can still listen to reason. Muramasa doesn’t want this anymore. He wants peace. I can feel it! He’s in a state of despair but he’s fighting desperately to maintain his sense of identity.”

As if to prove her point, a growl echoed across the land. It belonged to Muramasa. “I won’t… give in… Koga? Where are you Koga?”

Rukia frowned. _After all this time, he’s still searching for his master?_

Ichigo slowly moved forward, Shiro walking with him. “Being Hollowfied isn’t like flicking a switch. You don’t suddenly become a mindless monster.”

Ichigo was aware of several eyes on him. Rukia, Uryu, Orihime, Byakuya… Shiro. He opened his mouth to continue when Shiro spoke instead. “Hollows desire to fill the void created in their soul. And yeah, I’m no different. Yes, I’m part Hollow. So yes, I know what it feels like to _be_ Hollow. It can consume you entirely and then the only thing driving you are your instincts. Doesn’t matter what that desire is, the need completely consumes you and you will stop at nothing to fulfill that need.”

Orihime felt a wave of memories she tried to forget suddenly crash down on her. She hated those eyes, those cold, murderous, Hollow eyes that Ichigo had whenever he wore his Hollow mask. But even more, she hated the nothingness in Ichigo’s eyes when he became that monster who mercilessly tore Ulquiorra apart. However, Shiro’s words just now clicked in a lost puzzle piece. Perhaps it wasn’t that Hollows didn’t care, but that they cared too much. The loneliness from not having those feelings returned is what drove her brother insane. The pain of failing, of letting one of his friend’s down, that’s what drove Ichigo to become a Hollow. And then there was Shiro. He lived completely alone in Ichigo’s world, and the only person he loved once feared him. Orihime shivered at the thought.

Muramasa released another Cero. Together, Ichigo and Shiro released a Getsuga Tenshou, cancelling out Muramasa’s attack.

Ichigo was left panting and Shiro wasn’t in great shape either.

“We have to hurry, King,” Shiro confessed. “We’re reaching our limit with Shikai. We have to save Getsuga Tenshou for when we really need it.”

Ichigo nodded and shook his head to focus himself. His eyes locked on Muramasa. He’d been sliced open from their previous attack, but his instant regeneration took affect and healed the wound as if there was never one to begin with.

Uryu looked up to the sky. “Damn, Hollows are swarming again… We’ll have to hold them off so that Ichigo and his Zanpakuto can stay close to Muramasa.”

Chad nodded. He took one side of the swarm while Uryu took the other. Together, they could defeat many Hollows but the swarm seemed to increase by two whenever they cut down one. Rukia and Orihime stood back to back, able to fight off Hollows that dove for them. Then Byakuya activated his Shikai and defeated the Hollows that Chad and Uryu couldn’t get.

Shiro ran behind Muramasa while Ichigo attacked from the front. Shiro threw his blade at Muramasa while Ichigo simply dove right in. Muramasa blocked Ichigo, pushed him back, then spun around in time to deflect Shiro’s Zanpakuto.

“I won’t… give up…” Muramasa wheezed, his breath coming out strained. His body contorted and began to bulge out, as if he was being inflated. Ichigo stumbled backwards while Shiro called his sword back to him. They both had no defence for when Muramasa’s body suddenly expanded and a sea of red reiatsu swallowed them both.

Rukia tucked Orihime under her arm and ran from the expanding sea of red. Just before the reiatsu swallowed them, ice froze it in its tracks. Rukia looked towards the owner of the attack and her jaw dropped. “Sode no… Shirayuki? How are you here?”

The Zanpakuto spirit grinned. “The sword presented to you that your brother supposedly broke was me, but you forgot my ability to reconnect my shattered pieces whilst in Shikai form. I was able to gather strength and heal myself. I am only sorry that I was unable to come here sooner.” She turned around. “You should also know that I brought friends!”

One by one, Ikkaku, Toshiro, Rangiku, Yumichika, Izuru, Komamura, Renji, Hinamori, Soi Fon, and all their Zanpakuto appeared in the sky behind Sode no Shirayuki.

Rukia’s Zanpakuto spirit slowly turned around. She bowed towards Rukia. “I apologize for all of our actions whilst we were under Muramasa’s control, my lady. Captain Kurotsuchi reversed the affects and helped to repair broken Shikais. Now we’re here to assist with your overwhelming Hollow problem.”


	16. VS Muramasa Part 3

"Shunko!" Soi Fon shouted, rushing past the group of Zanpakuto and Shinigami in order to attack the solidified red reiatsu.

Without a moment's hesitation, Uryu shot an arrow right at her.

Soi Fon stopped to avoid the arrow. She turned on him. "You'll pay for that!"

"No, Soi Fon!" Toshiro intervened. "He was right to stop you! Stop for a moment and extend your senses. Ichigo Kurosaki's reiatsu is within that… thing."

"I don't care!" Soi Fon snapped. "I have a job to do!"

"Enough!" Toshiro shouted, pointing his blade at her. "Our job is to stop the Hollows that are swarming here and prevent them from entering Karakura town. Ichigo Kurosaki, if he really is within that thing, will find a way to destroy it."

She gritted her teeth. Soi Fon had to admit, Toshiro's attitude shocked her. "Do you truly have that much faith in the Substitute Shinigami?"

Toshiro nodded. "I would trust Ichigo Kurosaki with my life."

* * *

 

The Substitute Shinigami slowly opened his eyes. He was falling through the red. He couldn't sense Shiro, couldn't feel him. He wasn't prepared when he suddenly crashed through the water. Ichigo forced reiatsu beneath his feet and propelled himself forward. He arrived on the other side of the water and landed at the top of a pillar. This new world was made completely of this: endless pillars surrounded by endless water.

"Ichigo Kurosaki," Muramasa called. "How did you get here?"

Ichigo glanced around. "I don't know. Where are we?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Muramasa hopped onto the water below. Instead of falling through it, he could gracefully walk across the water without disturbing it. "Just as your precious Zanpakuto has a home within your Inner World, I have a place I once called home too. This is it." Off in the distance, a pillar crumbled apart and toppled into the water. Muramasa sighed, "My home is falling apart, and I'm certain you know why. As my body continues to become more Hollow-like, this place shall continue to destroy itself. I am thankful, however, for whatever slice of fate brought us together. For I may now finally finish our battle."

Muramasa raised his hand and a cry was heard. Ichigo turned in that direction to see Shiro writhing at the top of another pillar. Ichigo cursed and moved to help Shiro when he found that his feet would not move. "Muramasa! Leave him alone!"

"Zangetsu…" Muramasa hummed, walking over to where Shiro lay. "Go ahead and tell him your true desires. Let's see how well your bond stays intact when Ichigo finds out your darkest secrets."

Shiro bit his lip and shot a pained glare at Muramasa. Ichigo flinched when he saw blood drip off Shiro's chin.

Muramasa chuckled, leaping up to Shiro's height. He stood above Shiro. "You are a Zanpakuto. You are not immune to my power. I'll force your desires out eventually and you won't be able to resist them. You're also a Hollow, making those desires that much more intense."

The Shinigami shut his eyes and tried to force his feet to move. Ichigo gathered Spiritual Pressure and struggled as hard as he could… until he heard an awful screech. Brown eyes snapped open and locked onto Shiro.

Shiro's head snapped backwards and a roar burned through his lungs. His Spiritual Pressure sent shockwaves across the world, making Muramasa lose his balance. The moment Ichigo felt Muramasa's control slip, Ichigo broke free of his hold and to help Shiro, wrapping his arms protectively around his Zanpakuto.

"Zangetsu, please, I'm here…" Ichigo murmured, holding Shiro tightly. "He can't get to you anymore. Zangetsu, don't give in."

The wind rushed from Ichigo's lungs as Shiro pinned him to the surface of the pillar. Zangetsu leaned in close and snarled in Ichigo's face. Then, slowly, Shiro turned his glare at Muramasa. "Mine," came Shiro's hushed growl.

Muramasa froze.

"Ichigo belongs to me!" Shiro threw his blade at Muramasa and it left a deep gash in the spirit's right arm. Shiro flashed behind Muramasa, caught his blade, and cut across Muramasa's back.

Blood landed on Ichigo's cheek. Brown eyes widened in terror and Ichigo's entire body stiffened as Shiro's Spiritual Pressure raged through the air. Ichigo choked, the air almost unbreathable while Shiro's power was crushing him.

Laughter escaped Shiro's lungs which sent shivers down Ichigo's spine. Shiro grinned and said with a made giggle, "Muramasa! You almost had me for a moment, but ya see… you were wrong about the Hollow part! You couldn't control it! All you ended up doing was enhancing my desire to protect my King, and protect him I shall."

Muramasa chuckled and formed his sword in his left hand. "No matter, that still plays right into my plans. Your instincts will be your downfall. Do you think Ichigo will ever trust you again once he finds out what you want to do to him?"

Shiro narrowed his eyes. "Don't you dare fucking defile my King's name by speaking it!"

" _Your_  King?" Muramasa raised his eyebrow and blocked another violent slash. "But what does Ichigo think of being yours, being an object? Or have you never told him how badly you lust for his body?"

Shiro panted. His gaze left Muramasa and landed on Ichigo. Pain and fear flickered across the Shinigami's face, and Shiro felt guilt well in his stomach.

"I can hear it all. That voice that exists deep within your core." Muramasa's tone steadied as control over the battle returned to him. "It tempts you with whispers but now it screams. You want him. You want to possess him. Your Hollow nature wants to devour him but your Zanpakuto half won't let you. Thus, a new desire is born, the desire to ravish him. Once you claim him then no one else can."

"Ichigo," Shiro whimpered. He dropped to his knees. His face was pained yet guilty. It was as though he was still trying to hide the truth when it was clear for Ichigo to see.

Muramasa grinned. "Well go on. You'll be unable to stop yourself. You'll hurt him and he'll never trust you again."

Ichigo gasped and tried to move, but his limbs were still heavy under Shiro's presence and Muramasa now had his grip on Ichigo too. He saw Muramasa vanish as Shiro crawled towards him. He was on all-fours like an animal.

"Don't do it," Ichigo pleaded.

Shiro's eyes widened. Red had infected his once vibrant yellow eyes.

Ichigo glanced at Shiro's shaking form. The Shinigami blinked in realization. "It's hurting you."

Shiro's pressure suddenly lightened and Ichigo sat up.

"You're in pain," Ichigo whispered. He leaned towards Shiro, his movements strained by Muramasa's grip.

"Stay back!" the other snapped. "Don't come closer! I'll hurt you!"

"You won't," Ichigo assured. "I know you won't. You'll let yourself die before you hurt me. I can see that now. I'm an idiot for not seeing it sooner."

"King…" Shiro's eyes widened as he sensed Muramasa behind him. He spun around and knocked Muramasa's blade from his hand.

There was a soft shattering noise and Ichigo found himself able to move again. Shiro felt Ichigo's arms around him and his Spiritual Pressure enter him, weeding out the reiatsu that Muramasa had planted within him. Red eyes slowly returned to gold.

"Damn you both!" Muramasa screamed. "The power the two of you possess will be enough to sate me and I won't stop until I've obtained it!"

Shiro hissed as Muramasa used his technique on him once again, forcing him apart from Ichigo. Ichigo stared at the reflection on the water below, watching carefully as those bizarre arms wrapped around Shiro. Ichigo raised his arm and sent a Getsuga to the water below.

Muramasa's eyes widened. Ichigo flickered and appeared next to Shiro, catching him before he fell. Ichigo nodded. "I've figured it out. If you can't get a reflection on the water below you then you can't use your technique to trap us."

Shiro smirked at Ichigo before sending another Getsuga into the water. Ichigo used this opportunity to flash forward and stab his blade through Muramasa's chest. "It's over."

Muramasa's image dissolved like a heatwave. He appeared behind Ichigo, unharmed, and he cut across Ichigo's back.

"King!" Shiro cried, rushed towards Ichigo when his path was blocked by another Muramasa.

Ichigo steadied himself. He bit his cheek to distract from the pain on his back, although he could feel the slash every time he moved his shoulders. Ichigo ran towards Muramasa and sliced through him. Another fake. Shiro moved behind Ichigo and they stood back to back.

Muramasa chuckled. He noticed the way the two's chests were heaving. He grinned and said, "I had the both of you under my spell from the moment we began this fight."

_"Zangetsu… Ichigo…"_

"You…" Ichigo gasped.

_"His spell no longer works on me. If you can both truly trust me and each other, then I will become your eyes. You will be able to see through his illusions."_

Ichigo gulped and glanced at Shiro, who had also turned to look at Ichigo. Shiro nodded. "He's always had your best interests in mind. Although he suppressed me, I still trust him to keep you safe."

The orangette nodded and closed his eyes. Shiro grinned and did the same.

Spiritual Pressure swirled around the two of them, red and blue mingling and eventually becoming a flawless purple. Ichigo felt his thoughts melt away and his instinct consume him.

He felt rather than saw where Muramasa was, and he knew where Shiro would be long before Shiro even appeared there. Ichigo vanished when Muramasa aimed for him and Shiro's blade connected with Muramasa's sword. Shiro chuckled and pushed Muramasa back. Ichigo raised his sword and shoved it towards Muramasa. When Muramasa vanished, Ichigo and Shiro froze as to not hit each other. Muramasa appeared behind Ichigo and the Substitute Shinigami easily blocked the attack.

Muramasa's eyes widened. "How did you know where I was?"

He received no answer.

Shiro leapt over Ichigo. Ichigo ducked out of the way as Shiro swung at Muramasa's back. When Shiro struck Muramasa's sword, he forced his Spiritual Pressure to send Muramasa flying. The Zanpakuto flew over Ichigo's head and crashed into a pillar.

"They have become one…" Muramasa noted. "And they have the help of that other spirit."

He growled and threw himself at Ichigo. Ichigo vanished and Shiro cut Muramasa off. He used the other's speed against him and directed Muramasa into another pillar. Muramasa stumbled and crashed onto the top of the pillar. He rolled across it, barely stopping himself before the edge.

He shot a glare at Ichigo and Shiro as they landed on the opposite side of the pillar.

"Now I understand…" Ichigo mumbled. "Recognizing and trusting in each other's presence is the foundation of the relationship between a Zanpakuto and their Shinigami." Ichigo slowly opened his eyes. "But I bet you already knew that, Muramasa."

Muramasa shot to his feet. "You don't know anything!"

Shiro opened his eyes as well. Ichigo frowned and shouted, "Why can't you just accept it!?"

Shiro nudged Ichigo's side. "You know why."

Ichigo frowned and slowly nodded.

 _"You both must escape this place,"_ Juha warned.  _"It is being consumed by the hate and anger intensified by all the Hollows Muramasa has consumed over many years. You don't have much time."_

Ichigo glanced around at the crumbling world. "I know…"

Muramasa suddenly turned his head. He stared off into the distance as though he had heard something no one else could. Slowly, tired eyes turned to Ichigo. "Koga had abilities that would allow him to rise up and take control of the Soul Society. I was always so proud of that. He possessed such an amazing power, that's why I will never stop!"

Ichigo grunted as he was forced to block yet another attack. His entire body was protesting, his shoulders ready to give out. Shiro appeared next to Ichigo and placed his sword against Muramasa's as well. Ichigo gasped as Shiro's power filled him, numbing the pain from his injuries as his instant regeneration was activated.

Ichigo used this new strength to speak up. "You fought hard to release Koga from his seal, even though you knew he never saw you as anything more than a weapon! Admit it! The real reason you've been fighting all this time was so that you could feel Koga appreciate you for once!"

Muramasa glanced down at his hand. The Substitute Shinigami was right. Muramasa felt his heart stop and a hole pulsed through his chest. It faded as quickly as it came.

Ichigo had an idea. He pushed against Muramasa's sword and sent the Zanpakuto stumbling back. Ichigo locked his eyes on Muramasa's. "Let me tell you something… My Zanpakuto and I, we're gonna be together until the end!"

Shiro smiled and nodded, taking Ichigo's hand.

Ichigo continued, "And not just me, but everyone! All Shinigami will cherish and stay by their Zanpakuto until the end of their days! Each Zanpakuto is unique and no one would ever give them up or toss them away! My Zanpakuto is irreplaceable! I would never wish for another to be by my side, nor would I ever think of Zangetsu as just a tool for my victory! Isn't this what you truly fought for? Where is your honour? Don't turn your back on what you believed in!"

"You have no right… to judge me," Muramasa scowled.

Shiro stepped forward. "No one here is judging you. You felt ignored and you lashed out." Shiro placed a hand on Ichigo's cheek. "Ichigo knows this. He knows that Zanpakuto have free will, just like their masters, and he knows that a Zanpakuto's loyalty never truly falters. And to prove this to you…" Shiro scattered into a red light.

Ichigo gasped as Shiro's mask formed over his face. He touched it, his fingers gliding over the smooth surface. Ichigo could feel Shiro's protective reiatsu flow through him. "You've… given me all of your power," Ichigo murmured. "I won't abuse this trust you've placed in me, Zangetsu."

**_"I know, King."_ **

"Muramasa," Ichigo narrowed his eyes. "It's time to end this."

Muramasa gathered his Spiritual Pressure and Ichigo did the same. Then ran at each other and sparks flew as their blades connected one last time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so exhausted... but yay! I've finally caught AO3 up with the version of this story on fanfiction. So to celebrate, a brand new chapter!


	17. Ichigo's Resolution

"Captain!" Rangiku shouted, waving her arm at Toshiro. "That was the last of the Hollows!"

"I see," Toshiro murmured just before the dome of red reiatsu began to glow blue. "What is this!? What's happening?"

The blue light solidified into glass and shattered. As the pieces began to fade, Ichigo was revealed to be standing in the centre of where the dome had been.

Toshiro smiled. He  _knew_ he could count on Ichigo.

"Muramasa!" Ichigo shouted, rushing to the figure on the ground beside him.

Muramasa felt Ichigo take hold of him. He opened his eyes to see concerned brown and confused gold on black. Muramasa blinked and looked between Ichigo and Shiro. "After all this time…" Muramasa murmured. "The voice I heard calling for me is you."

Ichigo held Muramasa's hand.

"This feeling…" Muramasa continued. "Is this what you've been trying to explain to me all along?"

Shiro chuckled and leaned closer to Ichigo. "He does 'ave that sorta vibe with people."

Ichigo blinked. "What does that mean?"

Muramasa chuckled, which swiftly evolved into a cough. Blood spilled past his lips. Ichigo's eyes widened as Muramasa's Zanpakuto crumbled and Muramasa's form began to fade. His hand, which had become somewhat transparent, floated through Ichigo's and collapsed against the ground. Even though Ichigo knew Muramasa was dying, watching it happen still haunted the orangette.

Shiro slid his arms around his master from behind.

Muramasa smiled at Ichigo. "Thank you." Muramasa's form seemed to shatter into small, star-shaped bits of light. They floated into the air and blew away with the wind.

Shiro felt Ichigo tremble. Orihime and Rukia ran towards the two. Ichigo, upon noticing their arrival, immediately stood tall, just about shaking Shiro off him. He faced the two girls with a smile. Shiro knew Ichigo was hiding the true pain he felt. Ichigo's sorrow was like a dagger through Shiro's chest.

"Orihime, Rukia…" Ichigo's eyes softened. "Is everyone else alright?"

Orihime gave a swift nod. "Seems like everyone made it out just fine. Ichigo, is Muramasa really gone for good?"

"Yeah." Ichigo closed his eyes to hide the sting of tears. "And he kept his pride as a Zanpakuto until the very end."

"King…" Shiro murmured, touching his master's shoulder. "You did what you needed to do in order to put Muramasa at rest. You should feel proud of this accomplishment."

Ichigo released a shaky sigh that Shiro was certain only he heard.

* * *

Several Days Later… In the Soul Society

"Ichigo!" Renji shouted, waving at him from across the crowd of Soul Reapers. Renji shuffled through them all to get to Ichigo. Ichigo noticed his friend was wearing purple robes and a strange red band across his forehead. Perhaps this was Renji's party attire?

"Heya Renji, what's up?" Ichigo questioned.

Renji let out a deep breath once he reached Ichigo. "I've been meaning to talk to you… What's the deal with our Zanpakuto? Why are they nothing like us?"

Ichigo blinked. "What do you mean? Your Zanpakuto are-"

"Complete morons!" Renji groaned, sitting beside Ichigo in a chair that really wasn't meant for two people to sit in.

The orangette bit his bottom lip, trying not to laugh.

Renji continued, "And your Zanpakuto… well, he's friggen insane."

"Zangetsu is…" Ichigo thought of the right words, and while his thoughts lingered on Zangetsu, his happiness slowly faded. "Zangetsu is my every suppressed urge and my every last nerve. He's everything I'd be if I let my instincts take over." Ichigo turned his sights back on Renji. "And think of Zabimaru as a reflection of you, so maybe they're not idiots, they're just… stubborn?"

"Oh…" Renji blinked, a moment of clarity in his somewhat drunk eyes. "Right, okay." His eyes suddenly went wide and he leapt out of his seat. "R-Rukia's coming! Gotta run!"

After Renji took off, Ichigo tried to enjoy the celebration. He really did, but no matter how many friends greeted him, he still felt empty. His mind was taken out of his thoughts as Rukia approached him.

She stormed over with an angered frown. "Ugh! Damn Renji! He didn't even listen to me."

Ichigo smiled at her antics. "What did he do this time?"

"Well, he-"

There was a scream. Ichigo immediately leapt to his feet. He and Rukia rushed into the Kuchiki Manor where a group of girls were seen rushing out of a room. Ichigo and Rukia rushed inside.

"Hey, that's enough!" Rukia shouted.

Two beings, one green with horns and the other wearing an orange and purple getup, turned to her. Rukia reached for her Zanpakuto but found that it wasn't there. "Crap, I'm unarmed!"

"Leave this one to me!" Ichigo took his sword off his back. Before Ichigo could fight, a blur of white knocked him onto his rear. With a loud cackle, Shiro rushed into battle with the green spirit. Meanwhile, Sode no Shirayuki arrived and fought off the other one.

Once defeated, both spirits condensed into two Zanpakuto and shattered.

"They were Zanpakuto?" Rukia questioned.

"Those without masters…" Sode no Shirayuki answered. "Their Shinigami were most likely killed in the war, which means these spirits were left to become completely mindless."

Rukia turned to Ichigo and opened her mouth to speak but was caught off guard by the small smirked on Ichigo's lips.

"Did you have to knock me over?" Ichigo muttered.

Shiro extended his hand and Ichigo took it. "Not my fault you let your guard down! What kind of a Zanpakuto would I be if I didn't keep ya on your toes?"

Rukia chuckled to herself. _So that's why Ichigo was so grumpy at the Kuchiki's victory celebration,_ she thought,  _because Zangetsu wasn't with him._

"Ichigo!" Rukia shouted. Ichigo's head immediately turned to her. Rukia continued, "We have to report this to the Head Captain immediately!"

"Now, now," Kisuke mumbled, appearing between the four of them. He waved his fan with a grin. "Don't get so upset, Rukia. The Head Captain already knows about the remaining rogue Zanpakuto and has prepared Shinigami to deal with them."

Ichigo stepped forward. "Why weren't we told about this!?"

Kisuke turned his gaze to Ichigo and raised a blonde brow. "You weren't told about this because Yamamoto wants you to rest. You've been through enough, Ichigo."

Ichigo gritted his teeth and spun around. He stormed out the room, leaving Shiro behind in a flustered state. He glanced at Rukia, then at Kisuke. "You know how he is…" Shiro shrugged before chasing after Ichigo.

Kisuke gave Rukia a smile. "It's getting dark. You'd better follow them or else Ichigo might get lost. And don't worry about the remaining Zanpakuto! Really, we've got things handled."

"Okay, thanks!" Rukia nodded and ran after Ichigo, Sode no Shirayuki following right behind her.

"C'mon King!" Shiro shouted, racing after Ichigo once Ichigo had begun to use Flash Step. "You know he's right! You're barely recovering from an already difficult battle… don't make things harder on yourself by rushing into more fights!"

Ichigo stopped suddenly and Shiro nearly crashed into him. Ichigo glared at his Zanpakuto. "I thought you wanted me to rush into battles without thinking."

Shiro frowned and stepped up close to Ichigo. " _No,_ I wanted you to trust your instincts!"

Ichigo turned away. He didn't protest when Shiro slowly hugged him from behind. Ichigo sighed, "I just want to help."

"I know," Shiro reassured, sending the other a smile. "And you can help by not getting yourself killed."

"Gee, Zangetsu, I didn't know you cared so much," Ichigo teased.

Shiro scoffed and got up in Ichigo's face. "I wouldn't be here if I didn't care."

Ichigo chuckled and turned to face Shiro. Only then did he realize how close they were. Ichigo felt a haze surround him, like there was nothing more important in the entire world.

"Ichigo!"

Brown eyes blinked out of their trance. He turned to see Rukia and Sode no Shirayuki. Rukia had a hard frown on her lips. "Ichigo, I've just received a Hell Butterfly from the Head Captain himself, you're needed back in Karakura town. A rogue Zanpakuto has been spotted."

Ichigo sighed and leaned against Zangetsu. "So much for resting..."

* * *

Kon hadn't expected to be  _kidnapped_ on the way home from school but kidnapped he was. He squirmed around in the bag. "How dare you!? Don't you know who I am!? My name's Ichigo Kurosaki! And I'll kick your ass!"

"Knock it off!" Came the harsh growl of a woman's voice. Kon found himself flying out of the bag. He spun around and laid his eyes on none other than Yoruichi.

"You're beautiful!" He screamed and leapt towards her. She kicked him face first into the ground.

"Hey!" Ichigo cried, stepping through the Senkaimon. "He may have deserved that, but that's my body you're messing up!"

Yoruichi chuckled. "Sorry, Ichigo. I'll be gentler next time." She shot Ichigo a wink.

Ichigo's cheeks turned red. Shiro narrowed his eyes at the blush, feeling his gut tighten with… jealousy?  _What!?_ Shiro thought,  _Jealous? Of someone winking at Ichigo? No friggin way!_

Kon grunted and sat up. He saw Ichigo and gulped. "H-Hey boss… back so soon?"

Ichigo scowled, "I hope you didn't do anything too reckless while I was gone. Thanks for keeping an eye on my sisters, anyway."

Kon saluted him before his eyes landed on Shiro and his jaw dropped open. "Gh-Ghost!"

Ichigo groaned internally. "Relax… it's just Zangetsu."

"Tch, an' that's 'Shiro' ta yah," Shiro corrected. "The only one who c'n say my real name from now on is Ichigo."

Ichigo didn't bother to process or question Shiro's statement. As Shiro and Kon started bickering, Ichigo turned to Yoruichi. "Rukia said it was urgent. What's going on?"

"A Zanpakuto spirit showed up an hour ago and started terrorizing a construction site. Uryu and Chad were the first to respond and they caught him, but… it recently escaped. Uryu and Chad weren't injured and are out looking for it."

Ichigo frowned and glanced at Shiro. Shiro immediately stopped bickering with Kon and he nodded at his King. "I can sense it nearby. Ya ready?"

Ichigo nodded and the two took off.

Kon turned towards Yoruichi. "Wait, if Ichigo doesn't need his body, then why am I here!?"

Yoruichi chuckled and suddenly grabbed him by the ear. "Because you've been stirring up trouble and Kisuke's not around to clean up your mess, so I have to! And I sure as hell won't be doing it all myself!"

* * *

"Instinct, King! Do I have ta spell it out fer ya!?" Shiro snapped as Ichigo was sent flying across the pavement. The grazes on Ichigo's skin slowly began to heal.

Ichigo shot at glare at his Zanpakuto. "Shut up! You could be helping me!"

"Nah…" Shiro dusted off his Shihakusho without a single care in the world. "Your Bankai training starts here. I ain' helpin' ya unless you show me you remember the lessons I've taught ya."

Ichigo rolled his eyes just as the rogue Zanpakuto swung its scythe at him. Ichigo removed the smaller blade from his hip and used it to keep his opponent's blade from cutting the back of his neck. Then Ichigo grabbed the pole of the scythe with his free hand and yanked the weapon from the rogue Zanpakuto's hands. Ichigo grabbed his larger Zanpakuto and thrust it forward, leaving it as a threat near the spirit's neck.

Shiro clapped, slowly. "Not bad, Kingy, not bad."

Ichigo ignored him for the sake of questioning the spirit. "So, who are you, and what are you doing inside of Karakura town?"

The spirit squeezed its eyes shut. "My master… Where is my master!?"

Ichigo frowned. The most likely answer was that this Zanpakuto's master was dead. Guilt washed over Ichigo.

The Zanpakuto's eyes widened at the look on Ichigo's face. "No… it can't be…" It vanished.

Shiro moved to chase it, but a shoulder on his hand stopped him. Shiro slowly turned to face Ichigo. "Are you alright?"

Ichigo slowly shook his head. "I thought this whole thing would be over once Muramasa was… put to rest. I never even thought about how man Shinigami lost their lives and how many Zanpakuto would have also lost their masters."

Shiro frowned as he sensed Ichigo's thoughts grow dark. Shiro could read them clearly. Shiro punched Ichigo's shoulder and shot him a hurt glare. "Don't you dare think like that!"

Ichigo flinched. "Think like what!?"

"Don't play stupid!" Shiro grit his teeth. "Yer my master, Ichigo, so of course I know what you're thinking, and you just thought about how you don't deserve to have me while countless others lost their Zanpakuto. Do you have any idea how selfish that is!? And how much it hurts me!?"

"I-"

Shiro shook his head. "Nah, you don't get it all, do ya!? It wasn't yer fault that the Zanpakuto rebelled. It wasn't yer fault that Koga rejected Muramasa. None of this is yer fault! And ya…" Shiro placed a hand over his heart. Fear spiked through his being when he couldn't feel it beating. "And you'd wish that I had been lost too? Because then ya'd be the same as all the others suffering out there!?"

"Z-Zangetsu, no! I-I'd never-" Ichigo turned a horrified gaze towards Shiro. His lips loosened into a small frown as he said, "I'm sorry… You know I didn't mean it like that. You know I'm nothing without you. I only thought that right now I can't understand their pain and that if I could, it would help, but that doesn't help anybody. It's stupid. I'm just so self-destructive like that…"

Shiro sighed, his heartbeat returning as his rage simmered. "Nah, you care too much, that's all. It's not a bad thing but it ain't good fer ya either. I don't wanna lose ya because you didn't feel like you deserved to win. Ichigo, ya deserve the world."

Ichigo's cheeks grew warm. He looked up into warm, golden eyes and he gulped. A haze spread across Ichigo's mind. His eyelids suddenly felt heavy. Ichigo closed his eyes and slowly leaned into the other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cliffhanger? Where?


	18. Love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In just about 5 weeks I'll be graduating my college program. So, I'm exhausted – that's why this chapter isn't as polished or perfected as my other chapters. Thanks for understanding!

Warmth. That was all Ichigo could feel. Soft, pale lips touched his and sent a shiver of heat to his cheeks and then down his neck.

Only seconds after the first touch, Ichigo flinched away, gasping involuntarily. He had to force his eyelids open after finding them suddenly too heavy. He licked his lips as his eyes focused on Shiro's expression, trying to read the other.

"Zangetsu…"

"King?" Shiro's gentle, concerned look filled Ichigo with a feeling of trust and then a sense of urgency. Possessed with need, he closed the distance between himself and his Zanpakuto once more.

Shiro moaned as everything he'd ever wanted was right there for the taking. His instincts, however, had gone quiet as all his attention locked on Ichigo and the kiss they shared. Shiro dragged his teeth along Ichigo's lower lip as he pulled away. He felt Ichigo shiver beneath his fingertips.

Ichigo wanted to stay like that forever. His lips were so close to Shiro's that he could feel their warmth. Shiro's hands slowly moved up his back. Brown eyes slammed shut as pink lips dove in for another desperate taste of the pale demon.

Shiro gripped a handful of Ichigo's Shihakusho. With his other hand, he dragged his nails along the back of Ichigo's neck. Ichigo's breath hitched. Shiro's tongue asked for entrance and Ichigo allowed it.

Ichigo's hands moved across Shiro's chest, finding his pulse. He felt it quicken, and his own too, as they kissed deeper, hungry for more of a taste that they would never get enough of.

It was over all too soon, but the warmth lingered. Ichigo buried his face in Shiro's neck, panting against pale skin. Shiro shivered, Ichigo's closeness became an intoxicating drug – and it affected him more than he would like to admit.

"Ichigo!" Toshiro shouted, appearing near the two.

Ichigo jumped and turned to the young Captain. "T-Toshiro!" Ichigo's eyes widened at the look of urgency on Toshiro's face. "What's wrong?"

"I need you and your Zanpakuto to come with me to Urahara's shop. Immediately."

* * *

Rangiku hummed, a stack of photographs tucked neatly under her left arm. She followed her Captain's Spiritual Pressure which brought her to the Urahara shop. Extending her senses a little more, she was able to feel both Urahara, Ichigo, Hyrinmaru and Zangetsu within. She was certain these boys were going to enjoy her photographs!

As soon as she marched into their meeting, Toshiro shot her a glare. "Rangiku, what are you doing here? I didn't tell you to follow me to the World of the Living!"

"But Captain!" Rangiku cried, "You didn't say that I couldn't follow you either."

Shiro glanced at Ichigo, who shrugged, then immediately looked away.

Shiro scowled. He knew his King was avoiding him.

"Look, I brought gifts!" Rangiku cheered, bringing forth the photos she had made. Some were cute with her and Heineko hugging or posing with peace signs. Others were very polished like they were professional models. And then there were some mixed in that seemed... suggestive.

Ichigo turned his eyes away from the table. Heineko noticed and brought a handful of photos to him. "Ichigo! Don't you want any?"

Ichigo shut his eyes. "No, thanks."

Rengiku pouted and joined her Zanpakuto next to Ichigo. "C'mon, Ichigo~ Don't you wanna peek?"

"Not interested."

"Aww, boo!" Rangiku folded her arms. "I'm sure you'll like what you see!"

Heineko gave Rangiku a glance before she grinned and mumbled, "Oh I get it, Ichigo's just not that into women, right? Don't worry! I'm sure we can bribe Ikkaku into-"

"It's not like that, and it's none of your business!" Ichigo interrupted, cringing a little at Heineko's words. He really, really  _wasn't_ interested in seeing more of Ikkaku than necessary, especially since that entire squad wanted to fight Ichigo for some reason. "In my opinion, it doesn't matter if you're a man or a woman, and besides that, I'm not interested in anyone right now!" Ichigo flinched as soon as he finished his sentence and opened his eyes to look at Shiro. The other averted his gaze, feeling his heart cease beating for a mere second.

Kisuke glanced between the two, sensing the awkwardness. He could tell with just a glance that Ichigo regretted his choice of words and that Shiro was feeling pain from them. With that in mind, Kisuke decided to take matters into his owns hands. "Girls, girls~! You'll never get someone like Ichigo-san here, who can't appreciate a woman's body, to enjoy those photos. I'm afraid you'll have to interest someone else."

"Thank you, Kisuke," Toshiro snapped, "but Rangiku's photography business is shutting down. This is the last time you'll ever see any photos like these again!"

"But Captaaaain!" Rangiku cried, finally leaving Ichigo alone.

Toshiro sent a glare towards his lieutenant who then finally surrendered to her Captain's rage.

She pouted. "Fine. I'll just go find someone else who has better taste!" And with that, she marched out the room, taking Heineko with her, and she slammed the sliding door on her way out.

Ichigo stared at the ceiling while Toshiro gathered up the photographs. He was going to burn them as soon as he was done meeting with Ichigo and Urahara.

* * *

The last person Orihime had expected to see when she answered the door was Rangiku. Before Orihime could speak, the other grasped her shoulders.

"Orihiiiime!" Rangiku cried. "Do you have a camera? Captain Hitsugaya took mine away without reason!" Rangiku looked to her left and yanked Heineko into the door frame. "Also, do you have some spare clothes? Heineko doesn't have any to wear with her gigai."

The gigai Rangiku had stolen from Urahara's.

Orihime blinked at such odd requests. She shrugged. It couldn't hurt to humour Rangiku for a little while, could it?

She nodded and let both Rangiku and Heineko into her apartment. She got some clothes for Heineko and while she was changing, Orihime answered Rangiku's other question. "I don't own a camera but there's a photo booth downtown. I can take you if you like!"

Rangiku hugged her. "Honestly, Orihime! You're the best!"

Orihime chuckled softly. "Well, I don't know about that, but I can at least help out a little."

Heineko stepped out of Orihime's room wearing a purple button-up shirt and a yellow skirt. She glanced it over. "Does it look okay?"

Rangiku hummed and stepped forward. She adjusted the shirt so it had fewer wrinkles and sat better on Heineko's shoulders. With a nod, she turned Heineko towards a mirror. "There! You look perfect!"

Heineko beamed. "I agree!"

Orihime giggled and reached for her purse. "Well, off to the photo booth then?"

* * *

Ichigo said goodbye to Toshiro as they parted ways. Ichigo was headed home while Toshiro was going to the heart of Karakura town to see if he could sense Sword Beasts any better.

Alone once more with Shiro, Ichigo suddenly felt cornered.

"Ichigo-"

"No, no… I owe you an apology. We kissed and then I completely ignored you." Ichigo stopped walking and glared at the ground.

Shiro slowly took his hand. "Does it help if I say that I'm not mad at you?"

Ichigo thought about a reply but found his vocabulary to be lacking. He sighed and turned his gaze to Shiro's face. "I just don't know what I'm feeling, and it scares me."

Shiro was about to speak when a sudden pulse of energy cut him off. He glanced over Ichigo's shoulder. "It's coming from that way. We'd better hurry!"

* * *

"Can you feel that?" Rangiku asked, stopping Orihime and Heineko with a hand to their shoulders.

Orihime nodded and glanced towards an old construction site. "It's coming from over there, but… I'm not really sure what it is."

Rangiku nodded. "It's a Sword Beast, a rogue Zanpakuto." She glanced at Heineko. "Do you have any idea what might be causing these Zanpakuto to be behaving this oddly?"

Heineko's lips slowly curved into a frown. "Well, I can't say for certain, but I think these Zanpakuto must have lost their masters. With nothing to return to, they're losing themselves and possibly dying in the process. A Zanpakuto's master determines whether they live or die. Our existence depends on them."

As Rangiku sighed, Orihime felt saddened. She recalled many times where Ichigo struggled against Zangetsu. Perhaps she had it all wrong. Maybe Zangetsu was never trying to kill Ichigo or hurt his friends, but instead, he was jealous? In a way, at least, but it was true that Ichigo focused so much on others that he never took the time to care of himself, and that meant he never really took care of Zangetsu or that other spirit within him. And since Ichigo was so busy helping others, no one could help him. That's what Zangetsu really wanted, Orihime decided, and she wanted to help Ichigo too.

"Orihime?" Rangiku questioned, waking the girl from her thoughts. "Are you all right?"

"Oh, yes!" Orihime nodded. "I'm fine, just thinking."

She still looked worried, but Rangiku let it go for the time being. There was a Sword Beast that needed to be caught, and Orihime wouldn't run away if she asked questions, but the Sword Beast would.

"Okay, let's get moving," Rangiku said. They marched towards a construction site – seemingly abandoned for the evening. She could feel the rogue Zanpakuto getting closer. Rangiku reached into her pocket for a soul pill. She would need full access to her powers before long.

"Watch out!" Heineko screamed and grabbed her master before she could be crushed by a falling beam.

Orihime quickly summoned her shield, keeping more beams from collapsing onto Rangiku, Heineko and herself. She grunted as the weight of the beams pressed against her barrier.

"Orihime!" Ichigo shouted, rushing in.

Shiro appeared next to Orihime while Ichigo landed near Rangiku.

Ichigo frowned. "What's the matter? Can you turn into spirit form?"

Rangiku scowled. "I would have but I dropped my soul pill."

Ichigo nodded at Rangiku before turning towards his struggling friend. "Hold on just a moment longer Orihime," Ichigo murmured.

"Right!" She nodded.

Ichigo held his badge out to Rangiku. "Will this work?"

Rangiku shook her head. "I wish, but it's tampered to work for your reiatsu only, Ichigo. It's all right, I'll visit Kisuke to get more. Heineko and I will just get out of here for now. You can more than handle that Sword Beast."

"Alright, be safe!" Ichigo pleaded.

Rangiku smiled and Heineko nodded before they both ran out into the parking lot. Ichigo turned to Orihime when Shiro stopped him. "I'm faster than ya, so get outta here."

Ichigo opened his mouth to protest but instead decided he'd better not argue and clamped his mouth shut. He looked away from the intense, golden stare and took off.

Shiro sighed before he stepped closer to Orihime. "I'm gonna grab ya and we'll both get outta here long before the beams hit the ground. Do ya trust me?"

Orihime gulped but ultimately nodded. "Y-Yes… You… You are Ichigo's Zanpakuto, so…"

Shiro smiled. "Get ready."

Orihime braced herself. The barrier was getting heavier by the second. As soon as Shiro shouted for her to, she dropped her shield. Next thing she new, she was out in the parking lot and in Shiro's arms.

He grinned at her before placing her down. "Ya all right?"

Orihime nodded. "Thank you."

Shiro gave a nod in return then his eyes flicked to Ichigo. Orihime watched Shiro's eyes soften. Those weren't the eyes she once feared, no… they were warm and caring. Orihime dared to speculate there was love buried somewhere beneath the cold, golden surface.

Her heart fluttered as realization fell on her. Shiro didn't just care about Ichigo, he  _loved_ him.

A strong burst of reiatsu forced Orihime to her knees. Her limit had almost been reached before, but now  _this_ was a whole new level. She felt a warm touch on her shoulder. "Orihime? Are you okay?"

Orihime blinked and glanced at Ichigo. Ichigo and Shiro didn't seem affected by the sensation. She slowly murmured, "I can sense another rogue Zanpakuto. They're suffering, Kurosaki-kun. I think they've become a Hollow, just like-"

"Yeah," Ichigo interrupted her. She saw the pain in his eyes. The memories of Muramasa were still fresh.

Shiro nudged Ichigo. "You can handle it, right? I'll take her to those other Shinigami, and then I'll come back just in time to save yer ass."

Ichigo snorted. "You think? I bet I'll defeat it long before you get back here."

"Heh." Shiro lifted Orihime off the ground. "Yer too slow, King!"

Orihime barely had time to think before they were off.


	19. Become One

Ichigo wobbled along with the beam he was standing on at the top of the construction site. It was beyond him as to why he thought it would be a good idea to follow the rogue Zanpakuto this high up. Well, at least he knew he could catch himself with his reiatsu if he fell.

But it looked like Ichigo wouldn't have time to recover his balance. The Sword Beast opened its mouth and a Cero began to form.

Ichigo was about to jump out of the way when Shiro's voice stopped him. "Don't move!"

Ichigo's eyes widened but he couldn't turn to look at Shiro. The Cero started crackling its way towards him.

"Are you insane!?" Ichigo snapped. "It'll kill me!"

"Don't be a dumbass!" Shiro growled, appearing behind him. "You're more powerful than it! And even if you weren't, I would never allow you to get hurt."

Ichigo braced himself for the impact of the Cero. He gathered reiatsu onto his blade and pushed his own power against the force of the attack. Ichigo felt his opponent's strength bow to his own, and he dispersed the Cero into the night sky.

Panting, Ichigo shot a glare at Shiro, who cackled with a shrug, "Told ya you could do it."

Ice suddenly surrounded the Sword Beast. Ichigo turned to see Toshiro.

The Captain turned a frown upon Ichigo. "It's just as I thought… these rogue Zanpakuto, like Muramasa, are able to fuse with Hollows to sustain themselves. However, they Hollowfy instantly due to lacking the willpower necessary to control a Hollow."

The ice shattered and drifted away in the wind. All that remained of the Sword Beast was a broken sword.

Ichigo locked his gaze on the metal shards. If one rogue Zanpakuto had managed to sneak into Karakura, then whose to say there weren't ten or twenty more where that one came from?

"I know what you're thinkin'," Shiro murmured next to him. "And even if there's a thousand of them in Karakura, you and I will get them all-"

Shiro's heart skipped a beat when he noticed, far too late, that there was a spark of strong reiatsu behind him. Ichigo grabbed Shiro's sleeve before Shiro had time to turn around. Ichigo threw Shiro out of the way and a sword, thrown at an incredibly high speed, whipped through Ichigo's shoulder.

Ichigo screamed and Shiro saw red. Time moved at an incredibly fast speed. Shiro lost track of his thoughts as rage consumed him.

It took a minute for Shiro to realize what happened. He blinked and found he was standing on the ground with Ichigo tucked against his chest. Warm blood soaked into Shiro's white Shihakusho. Shiro's other hand had his Zanpakuto in a tight grip, more blood dripping from the tip of his blade.

Ichigo panted against Shiro's chest. "Zangetsu… I'm gonna be fine, it's okay…"

Shiro shook his head to clear it. He heard a whimper of pain and looked down. He had one foot pressed against a face he didn't recognize.

He stepped back, noticing a pool of blood surrounding the figure. It burst into shards of light before fading into a broken sword. Shiro recognized the reiatsu signature – it belonged to the Sword Beast who had hurt Ichigo.

Shiro gulped as he put the pieces together. An image of him killing the rogue Zanpakuto slowly returned to his memories. "Did I…?"

"It's okay," Ichigo murmured. "Toshiro was gonna fight it anyway. You didn't hurt anyone else."

Shiro closed his eyes and brought his face to hide in Ichigo's neck. He focused his reiatsu on the wound he sensed in Ichigo's shoulder and felt it slowly close. "I can't believe I lost control like that," Shiro murmured. "I mean, I completely blacked out, Ichigo. That thing hurt you and I lost it."

Ichigo sighed at the relief of his wound healing. "It's okay. C'mon… let's go home."

But when Ichigo wouldn't meet Shiro's gaze, Shiro knew something was still bothering his King.

* * *

They entered through Ichigo's bedroom window, startling Kon who had been 'reading a magazine'. Ichigo scowled and took his body back from Kon. Ichigo immediately felt sore and rubbed his joints. What had Kon been doing with his body? Whatever, he'd ask the stupid mod soul tomorrow.

He placed Kon's pill very carefully in a jar on his desk. Then, Ichigo stretched, unaware of the golden eyes that wandered his body as he did so. Ichigo fetched the magazine Kon had been reading and he tore into three pieces before dropping it into his trash bin. He'd have to empty that tomorrow without letting Karin or Yuzu see it – or his dad, for that matter.

"Everything all right?"

Ichigo blinked and turned his gaze on Shiro. Ichigo smiled. "Yeah, everything is fine. Do you mind staying up here on your own? I wanna go say hey to my sisters."

Shiro slowly nodded. Ichigo let out a yawn before slowly making his way down the stairs.

As Shiro watched him go, he made a small vow to himself that tonight Ichigo would get the rest he deserved.

Ichigo rubbed his eyes as he walked down the stairs.  _Why am I so tired? Jeez._

His eyes widened as he counted three figures on the couch. Karin and Yuzu were passed out against each other, and the third person was flipping through the TV. Ichigo blinked as he recalled where he'd seen the third person before. "Hey, aren't you Zabimaru? Renji's Zanpakuto?"

Snake frowned and narrowed his eyes on Ichigo. "Damn it! Why can you Shinigami leave me alone!?"

Karin jumped awake.

Snake turned to her and spat, "Why did you bring me to your stupid house anyway?" Then he rushed out the door and into the night. Karin immediately sprung to her feet, taking only a second to glance at Ichigo and process that her big brother had come downstairs before she followed Snake out onto the streets.

"Oi, Karin!" Ichigo cried. He spat a curse to himself then took off after her. He made it out onto the street before his arm was grabbed.

"King, wait!"

Ichigo turned a glare on Shiro.

Shiro flinched but his grip on Ichigo's arm tightened anyway. "You should know… I can sense a Sword Beast. Get out of your body, now. You'll be able to follow your sister much faster that way."

Ichigo's glare softened into an apologetic look. He looked down to see Shiro holding out his Shinigami badge to him. "Thanks, Zangetsu…"

* * *

"Oi, kid!" Karin called after Snake. She stopped when he turned to her. Karin could see a person sitting atop the light post.  _Another spirit?_  She thought. It was then that the object in Snake's hand became clear.

It was a sword.

"Zabimaru!" Karin called, "What are you doing!?"

The figure vanished from above the light post and appeared behind Karin. He grabbed her shoulder and pressed his own blade against her throat. "If you make one wrong move, boy, I'll slice her pretty little head off."

Snake gritted his teeth. "Damn it…"

"Now, drop your sword," the spirit demanded.

Snake let his blade fall to the ground.

Ichigo's shoulders tensed. He was only a few blocks away, but he could still see his sister in danger. "Zangetsu… what do I do?"

"Just wait…" Shiro murmured.

Sure enough, the Sword Beast abandoned Karin to attack Snake. The moment he did so, Shiro felt a spike in Ichigo's Spiritual Pressure and his King vanished. Shiro sighed and followed him. Sensing Ichigo's instinct, which was to get Karin to safety first, Shiro prepared to distract the Sword Beast so that Ichigo would have time to get away with Karin. Once they were gone, Shiro kicked Snake to the ground and then held his sword towards the Sword Beast.

The Sword Beast stumbled. "Wh-What the?"

Snake groaned and rubbed his back. "What the heck was that for!?"

Shiro grinned. "My master's pissed at ya, but he's too nice to take it out on you. Consider that a warning that if you're every stupid enough to get his sisters into danger again, I'll personally destroy you."

Snake frowned and folded his arms. "Screw you, Zangetsu. What do you care about your  _master_ anyway? Yours and mine… they're both idiots."

The corner of Shiro's mouth lifted into a snarl. "I'll forgive ya fer that one since ya obviously don't know what yer talkin' about." Shiro's rage hadn't quite simmered when he swung his sword at the Sword Beast again. The rogue Zanpakuto's sword went flying out of his hands.

Snake climbed to his feet and turned around to start running when he bumped into Renji's legs. Snake looked up and gulped.

"Renji!" Shiro grinned, "You can handle this rogue Zanpakuto and the lil' brat, right?"

Renji nodded. "Yeah, we've got this. Go make sure Ichigo gets home safely."

Shiro grinned at the glare he got from Snake before flashing away to catch up with Ichigo.

* * *

Ichigo sighed as he peered into the living room at his once again sleeping sisters. A few hours earlier, while he was bringing Karin home, Kisuke appeared with a bag of items and took Ichigo aside to explain the purpose of each one. It was then up to Ichigo as to which items he was going to use to make up a lie to his sisters. He didn't like lying, but to protect them...

"King?" Shiro murmured, stepping into the room.

Ichigo turned to him and smiled. "Wow, those clothes look really good on you."

Shiro frowned and folded his arms. "Yeah? Well, I  _hate_ them. Why do I have to be in this stupid body anyway?"

Ichigo chuckled. "Because, I'd rather not get caught talking to the air, and this way you can come with me to school."

"I think you just like torturin' me."

Ichigo grinned. He opened his mouth to speak when Karin jumped awake. "Ichi…go? What happened to Zabimaru? And… who is that?"

Ichigo sucked in a deep breath as he tried to remember the story he was going to tell. "This is Shiro, an exchange student from school. Don't you remember?"

Karin's eyebrows squished together. "An exchange student? What are you talking about? He was with us while you were in that weird robe again, Ichigo… And where's Zabimaru?"

Ichigo frowned. "I'm not sure what you mean, Karin. You must've been dreaming. You looked really exhausted when Shiro and I came in."

Yuzu yawned and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. "Oh… Ichi-nii? What time is it? Why's your friend still here?"

Ichigo gave Yuzu a gentle smile. "Shiro's gonna stay here a few days with us. I've already moved the spare mattress into my room. There were some complications with the school when it came to finding Shiro a place to stay in Japan, so I've volunteered to let him stay here for a bit while they sort things out. Shiro doesn't speak Japanese very well, which is also why I volunteered since I can speak English."

Shiro blinked at how well his King could come up with lies. He tried to dull his expression, so it looked like he couldn't understand, yet it was also hard not to look impressed with his King's quick thinking.

"Okay, Ichi-nii!" Yuzu grinned. She bowed her head towards Shiro. "Nice to meet you, Shiro!"

Karin narrowed her eyes at her brother. A swarm of questions buzzed in her head, but she didn't ask them. "Welcome to the house."

Ichigo turned to Shiro and repeated the girls' words in English. Shiro waited a moment, as though processing, and then he gave the girls a small smile. Ichigo moved towards the stairs and Shiro slowly followed.

"I'll show him around upstairs then I think I'm calling it a night," Ichigo said.

Yuzu smiled, "Alright! Night, Ichi-nii!"

Karin watched them make their way upstairs. She rubbed her eyes and looked back at the couch. Maybe the whole thing really had been a dream?

* * *

Ichigo sighed as he shut the door. Exhaustion filled his muscles, making them twice as heavy.

Shiro noticed the way Ichigo dragged his feet across the ground. Shiro frowned but didn't bring it up, knowing that Ichigo would dismiss any attention focusing on his personal well-being. Instead, Shiro glanced around the room and asked, "Yer not actually making me sleep on the floor, are ya?"

Ichigo slowly shook his head. "No, not really. My bed's big enough."

As Ichigo sat down on the bed, Shiro sighed. "So, are you going to sleep?"

"Mhm," Ichigo muttered. He slowly laid down, turning away from Shiro.

Well, that was the last straw… Shiro marched over to the bed and hovered over Ichigo. "Stop doing that."

Brown eyes widened but didn't meet Shiro's gaze. "Doing what?"

"You're avoiding me and all I want to know is why…" Shiro frowned and sat on the bed next to Ichigo's feet. "It hurts, King."

Ichigo flinched at the nickname. "Please, don't call me that."

Shiro scowled. "And why not? Yer  _my_ King, Ichigo. Is it because you're scared of me? Scared that your Zanpakuto is a monster?"

"That's not it!" Ichigo snapped. "I know what you are, and I know what that means I am. I don't care about that. I'm scared…" Ichigo curled in on himself. "I'm scared that you care about me. I'm scared of the idea that someone could kill another being just to protect me."

Shiro blinked. He slowly crawled into bed next to Ichigo. "You don't have to be scared about that. It's not a bad thing…"

"But  _I'm_  the protector, Zangetsu." Ichigo murmured. "I don't want anyone to suffer because of me."

Shiro pressed a kiss to Ichigo's forehead. "I'm scared too, King…"

Ichigo flinched at the name again. "You are?"

Shiro slowly hugged Ichigo. "I'm scared to lose you. If you're always protectin' others, then who's gonna protect you?"

Ichigo wanted to keep arguing his point, but he couldn't keep himself from feeling safe in Shiro's arms. "I… I don't want to lose you, either. I realized that the moment Muramasa tried to control you. I'd be…" Ichigo leaned a little closer to Shiro. "…so completely lost without you."

"So, let me protect you, my King, and you can protect me too." Shiro closed his eyes and pressed his forehead against Ichigo's.

Ichigo no longer felt fear at his nickname. Instead, it made his heart beat a little faster and his cheeks grow warm. He knew now that 'King' meant more than Shiro's willingness to lend him his power, it was also a promise to never leave his side.

Ichigo smiled at the realization.

Shiro scanned Ichigo's face. "Yer beautiful when you smile, King. You should worry less." Shiro's grin only widened when Ichigo's cheeks turned red. "Ichigo, I wanna kiss you…"

Ichigo nodded and accepted the gentle kiss on his lips. What he hadn’t been expecting, however, were the dozen or so kisses afterwards that went down his neck.

Shiro leaned away and Ichigo whimpered, “Don’t…”

Shiro locked eyes with the orange-head. Shiro gulped under the lidded gaze of his master. The look in Ichigo’s eyes spread heat throughout Shiro’s body.

“Zangetsu… I was gonna say don’t stop…”

Shiro grinned and tugged on Ichigo’s shirt. “Can you take this off?”

Ichigo nodded and sat up, Shiro shifting out of his way. Ichigo tossed his shirt to the floor where it would remain long forgotten. He leaned back in bed only for Shiro to immediately settle on top of him.

Shiro brought Ichigo’s hand to his lips. “I never want to stop kissing you…” He said and then kissed the top of his hand.

Ichigo, for a moment, felt his self-control flicker away. It was the same feeling when you’re trying to force yourself to stay awake and you catch yourself drifting off, only Ichigo caught himself giving in to a desire he had never experienced before. “D-Damn…”

With a steadily growing grin, Shiro asked, “Got something to say, my King?”

There was another meaning to that nickname that Ichigo was now certain of – the promise of pleasure. Not only that, but the promise to serve, to give Ichigo anything he wished for. Shiro wouldn’t overstep Ichigo’s rule nor would he ever let Ichigo exist without having anything he asked for. It was a powerful promise. Ichigo’s breath hitched with his own conclusion, wanting so desperately to lose himself in the infinite promises Shiro was making all through a single word, _King_.

But instead, excitement and panic forced Ichigo to gasp, “What if I don’t deserve you?”

Shiro smiled and leaned over Ichigo once more, placing a kiss on his cheek. “I told you once already, my King, that you deserve the world.”

Ichigo closed his eyes. “What if I don’t? What if-?”

“Substitute Shinigami, human, saviour of the Soul Society…” With every new item, Shiro placed another kiss on Ichigo’s neck, moving towards his ear, “hard worker, big brother, protector… All those things describe you, Ichigo. All of those words represent victories you’ve won because you are Ichigo Kurosaki… and you are the kindest, most beautiful, most worthy person there is.”

Slowly, Ichigo’s worry faded. “Thank you… I don’t know what to say…”

“You’re always welcome, your _highness_. And you don’t have to say anything. In fact, it’d be best if you decided only to _feel…_ ” Shiro moved his lips down Ichigo’s neck and placed open mouth kisses on his tan skin, each kiss getting sloppier as he was eager to shower more of his King’s skin with affection.

Ichigo started letting his control slip one piece at a time, starting with his breathing. Gentle, quiet breaths soon turned into deep gasps and panting as pressure grew down below. Pale hands moved over his skin, spreading warmth where they touched. He heard as much as he felt Shiro kiss down his body. On his stomach, his hip, near the hem of his pants… Ichigo gasped.

He locked his eyes on Shiro’s grin. The pale man chuckled, “Something the matter, King?”

Ichigo struggled to find the right words. What came out was a low groan of Shiro’s true name. It wasn’t fair, how was Shiro so damn composed while Ichigo was just moments from losing control?

“It’s alright, King. You can lose yourself with me… you can trust me.”

Ichigo’s eyes managed to find Shiro’s again. Dark, brown orbs instantly caught Shiro’s attention. “Zangetsu… I do trust you.”

Shiro shivered at the deep tone Ichigo’s voice had taken on. He slowly slid off the bed, maintaining eye contact with Ichigo and holding out his hand. “Let’s get you out of those jeans.”

Ichigo followed automatically. He stepped into Shiro, placing his lips on the other’s while he undid his jeans. Ichigo knelt to lower his pants and boxers while Shiro followed him with his mouth. Ichigo placed his hands on Shiro's shoulders as he kicked his clothing aside.

Ichigo guided Shiro back to the bed, laying back as Shiro hovered over him once more. “Zangetsu,” Ichigo gasped between kisses, “I want to... I want you..." He groaned and snapped himself closer to Shiro. "Fuck me.”

Pale lips curled into a grin. “I can do that, my _King._ ”

Ichigo blinked as Shiro stepped off the bed. His skin tingled, and he almost followed Shiro if only to maintain body contact. He watched Shiro wander the room looking for something.

“What are you trying to find?” Ichigo asked.

Shiro turned a grin on Ichigo. “Something to use as lube, King, unless you want to be taken dry.”

“Oh. Right, umm…" Ichigo stood up. "I have a better solution.”

Shiro raised a brow as Ichigo took his hand. Ichigo led him to the door. Ichigo cracked it open, peering down the hallway to make certain no one was there. After a moment, he nodded, and then dragged Shiro through the hallway and into the bathroom. Ichigo shut the door behind them then turned on the shower.

Shiro peeled his attention away from the running water to glance at Ichigo. “So… now what?”

Ichigo reached into a drawer. “Well, it’s not perfect, but it’ll work.” He took out a bottle of lotion then stepped into the shower. He sighed as the warm water touched his skin.

Shiro watched the droplets as they rolled over Ichigo’s curves, admiring his King’s strong form.

“Are you just gonna stare?” Ichigo asked, pouring lotion onto his hand.

Shiro snorted. “Why? Ya gonna give me a good show, King?”

Ichigo’s cheeks turned dark red. He huffed, “Get in here.”

Shiro snorted and stripped down before stepping into the shower. Ichigo leaned into Shiro and they shared a kiss while Ichigo’s hand found Shiro’s erection. He swallowed the startled groan Shiro let out as their kiss deepened.

Ichigo slipped the bottle of lotion in Shiro’s hand. Shiro tugged on Ichigo’s hip, signalling for the other to turn around. Ichigo separated from their kiss unwillingly, before bracing himself against the wall of the shower.

Shiro pressed himself against Ichigo, feeling his Shinigami’s body curve to meet his own. “Relax, King, it’ll feel better if you do.”

Ichigo nodded and released a deep breath.

Shiro covered his hand with lotion and only teased Ichigo’s entrance at first. He could see and feel Ichigo twitching. But as Ichigo grew accustomed to the touch, the twitches ceased, and he began to relax. That’s when Shiro added the first finger, and the next, and then a third. He stretched Ichigo at a pace that he knew Ichigo could handle. He didn’t dare insult his King by treating him too delicately, but he didn’t want to hurt Ichigo either.

“I can’t take it anymore…” Ichigo moaned. “I need you… deeper…”

Shiro’s self-control nearly snapped. He wanted more of Ichigo’s warmth, more of Ichigo, more… He removed his fingers and positioned himself behind Ichigo. “Are you ready?”

“Fuck, yes…” Ichigo wheezed out, arching his back. “Hurry…”

Shiro chuckled and dragged his teeth over the shell of Ichigo’s ear. “So impatient, King…” But Shiro would be lying if he said he wasn’t eager to get started either. He slid his hands around Ichigo’s hips and thrust in.

Ichigo moaned. After two or three thrusts he found a way to move his hips to help Shiro get deeper. The pace was uncontrolled, frantic, and needy. Ichigo moaned, louder and louder until, “Fuck! There! Hit there again, Zangetsu!”

Shiro groaned, “Yes, King…”

The two worked together, drawing moans from each other, and bringing each other closer and closer to release. Shiro felt Ichigo clench around him and he knew his King was close.

Ichigo gasped as he felt himself climax. His release spilt against the wall of the shower. He couldn’t help himself from tensing, and as he did, he heard Shiro release a breathy moan behind him before releasing within him.

The rode out their orgasms together until Shiro pulled out. Then Ichigo leaned against the wall, Shiro leaning against him. Shiro let go of Ichigo’s hips and hugged him from behind, the two panting and letting the water from the shower rinse their bodies.

“That was… so good…” Ichigo vocalized after a minute.

“Yeah…” Shiro mumbled, trailing a hand up Ichigo’s side. “It was amazing…”

Ichigo smiled and slowly turned around. He placed a soft kiss on Shiro’s lips before murmuring, “You’re amazing…”

“So are you, my sweet King,” Shiro replied, giving Ichigo a kiss on his forehead. They washed and rinsed each other off before leaving the shower. Ichigo dried himself off before wrapping a towel around his waist. Shiro did the same before following Ichigo back to bed. There they laid together, hidden under Ichigo’s blankets. Shiro draped his arm around Ichigo and Ichigo sighed peacefully as they fell asleep in the moonlight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for waiting for this update, readers! I’ve been busy with a student placement (like, a co-op that I did for 30+ hours a week) so I appreciate you being patient with me.  
> That being said, I’ve officially finished my college course. I’m going to be a certified writer(TM).  
> Can you believe it? Thanks to all of you who have been with me since the beginning of my writing journey, and welcome to those of you who joined us along the way! I’ve been on fanfiction net for like… something close to 6 or 7 years? I started off writing fanfiction for Winx Club and W.i.t.c.h, then Yu Gi Oh, and then I found my calling: Bleach. Lol  
> Well anyway, I just wanted to let you know that I’m still going to be busy this summer. I’m working on my own writing/photography business. You can find me as Midnight Prose on Inkitt, Instagram, Patreon, and Buy Me A Coffee. You will find my writing blog on Tumblr as adventurebeneaththewords, and you’ll find me on DeviantArt as midnight-rose77.  
> If you like my writing, consider supporting me! Please check out my original fiction, my photography, and follow me too!  
> Also, if you want more HichiIchi, follow shiroxichigo on Tumblr!  
> Have an awesome day and look forward to the next chapter of this story coming soon.


	20. Feeling Whole

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all love this cute chapter as much as I do!
> 
> Happy reading!

 

That morning, Shiro opened his eyes to the dimly lit ceiling of his King’s bedroom. He smiled, feeling like, for once, he belonged completely in this moment. His King was tucked under his chin and safely wrapped in his arms, but then, Shiro could feel Ichigo start shaking.

“King?”

Tears streamed down Ichigo’s cheeks from beneath shut eyes.

“Ichigo?” Shiro shook him.

With a gasp, Ichigo’s eyes opened and he clung to Shiro. “Oh god… I-I… It hurt, I... you were so alone, you… How can you not hate me? How could you ever forgive me for the way I treated you?”

Shiro blinked at the desperate look in Ichigo’s eyes. “Relax, Ichigo, it was just a dream. I couldn't ever hate you... what happened?”

Ichigo shook as he answered, “I... It felt like, I was reliving my memories, but from your point of view. My- Our fight against Byakuya, when I tore off your mask, that scream you made...”

Shiro’s mouth suddenly grew dry. It was truthfully one of the most painful experiences of his life. “Ichigo…”

Ichigo turned his gaze away from Shiro. “It felt so real. All the times you tried to help me and I rejected you...”

Shiro sighed and hugged Ichigo a little closer.

“I remember… you told Byakuya you had no name.”

Shiro frowned. True, he has said that, and he had believed it at the time. But he learnt the truth soon after. His memories were awakened as he grew stronger and got closer to Ichigo.

“And…” Ichigo continued, “you told me you just wanted to help, but I still rejected you. How could I do that to you?”

“I was about to kill him, Ichigo. You did the right thing-”

Ichigo grabbed Shiro’s shoulders. “I told you to disappear! I told you that I didn’t need you!”

Shiro did the first thing he could think of: he placed his lips on Ichigo’s. He pressed further until he felt his King relax and return the kiss.

Shiro murmured against Ichigo’s cheek, “Having you near me… accepting me… it’s everything I’ve ever wanted.”

Ichigo glanced away. Shiro turned his chin right back to face him.

“I don’t hate you, Ichigo. I never hated you. I was confused, frustrated, and… whenever I tried to talk to you, I was more Hollow than Zanpakuto. When we fought for control, it was a constant battle in my mind to remind myself that you needed to learn. It wasn’t about me, it was about you, and you needed to feel like you were in control, not like your world was falling apart. You weren’t ready to know the truth and I wasn’t ready to deliver it to you.”

Ichigo felt a hand on his cheek. He leaned into it. “So, you really don’t hate me?”

“Of course not.” Shiro leaned closer to Ichigo until their foreheads were touching.

Ichigo closed his eyes. “Then… what about that time… the first time I met Grimmjow? He had hurt Rukia and…”

“You wanted revenge. I felt that. It filled the entirety of your inner world. I was so close to you that I wanted revenge too.” Shiro rubbed Ichigo’s back. “I was so close to you, but I couldn’t take control. Not until you used a Getsuga…  _ my  _ Getsuga. And it felt good when you used it. I still remember that feeling. That beautiful grin on your face…”

Ichigo leaned back and opened his eyes. “I still don’t understand… why you hid the truth from me.”

“It was to protect you, Ichigo. It wasn’t my idea.” Shiro sighed. “And… for a while, I thought I would lose to my Hollow half. I thought it would consume you. Better you defeat me and take down the Hollow half with me so it couldn’t hurt you, but…”

Ichigo scooted a little closer. “But?”

Shiro chuckled. “Well, something completely unbelievable happened. When you stabbed me… when you truly took control of your instincts, I suddenly felt whole. What I felt was the pride of a Zanpakuto and the satisfaction from my Hollow half that knew it had a worthy King. The two halves clicked together and, as I retreated to the deepest core of your soul, I was happy knowing you were finally using me properly.”

Ichigo frowned. “But I was still using you. I wasn’t working with you…”

Pale lips curled into a dark grin. “But now you are. And it feels so good.”

Ichigo blushed at the other’s tone. “What do you mean?”

Shiro pulled Ichigo closer. “C’mon King, think about it."

Ichigo shrugged.

Shiro sighed as he thought of the words to explain. After a moment, he came up with, "Is it really surprising that I want you to grow stronger? That I want you to survive? That I want you to fight at your full potential?"

"Guess not," Ichigo replied.

Shiro chuckled and shook his head. "I guess I'm still not explaining this right. Before the only times I felt like this is when you gave in, even for a moment, and you used my power. It was so thrilling, King, helping you take down your enemies."

Ichigo felt a shiver work his way up his spine. "Sometimes I wonder if you really are my Zanpakuto," he added, his tone gentle and teasing. Then again, maybe Ichigo knew deep down that they weren't so different after all.

He gasped when he felt Shiro's lips on his ear. "I can name at least five times where you enjoyed losing control.”

Ichigo gulped, though from fear or excitement, he couldn’t tell anymore. “Alright, do it then.”

“Well, for starters, that first fight against Grimmjow.”

“Yeah, well… that’s not fair. I wanted to beat him, it didn’t matter the cost.”

Shiro chuckled, “Fine. Then, what about the very first time you fought Renji?”

Ichigo blinked. “What, like when... he came to get Rukia? But you weren’t even-”

“I’ve always been within you. Even before Rukia gave you her powers. But besides that, when you first fought Renji, I was barely awake at that point, but you reached deep down, and I snapped out of my slumber. You needed me. Your injuries stopped hurting and you suddenly had the power to face your opponent, sound familiar?”

Ichigo shrugged. “Fine, I'll give you that.”

Shiro smirked. “Number three is when you fought that Hollow who set bombs off with his tongue. I have a vague image of you grabbing its tongue and yanking it out.”

Ichigo frowned. He’d forgotten about that Hollow. And crap, that was three, Ichigo was losing this fight. “Next.”

“I was gonna say when you hospitalized some bullies, but that happened a lot didn’t it?”

Ichigo scowled. “That’s not my fault. They…”

“They hurt you or they hurt your friends. It was for defence. I don’t care about them or whatever stupid shit they’re getting up to now. Point is, they won’t ever mess with my King again.” Shiro brushed Ichigo’s hair to the side of his face.

Ichigo closed his eyes as Shiro continued to play with his hair.

Shiro continued, “Remember Jin Kariya?”

Ichigo flinched. “Yeah. You don’t forget getting electrocuted.”

Shiro grinned. “Another Getsuga you were grateful for.”

Ichigo huffed. “Alright, whatever, I get the point.”

Shiro placed a finger to his lips. “Ah, ah… number five: when you were in hell.”

Ichigo flinched and moved Shiro’s hand from his lips. “I don’t want to talk about that. Too many bad memories. And – agh – it just loops back around to Ulquiorra and…”

“I know…” Shiro nodded. “I… really did lose control when Ulquiorra hurt you. Fuck, Ichigo, I thought you were dead and I just… lost it.”

Ichigo squeezed Shiro’s hand. “Like… when I thought Yuzu was dead. When I thought I failed…”

Brown eyes shut as Shiro pulled him into his chest. “It’ll never happen again, you hear me? We’re going to become strong. Stronger than anyone and anything. Nothing will hurt you, your family, your friends, or anyone else you care about ever again.”

Shiro could feel Ichigo shaking again. He rubbed Ichigo’s back in apology for bringing up painful memories.

But then, Shiro heard a very faint sob. “Shit, Ichi… You went through all that without time to let out all your emotions, right? Your feelings always get shoved aside.”

“It doesn’t matter. It really doesn’t, Zangetsu. So long as everyone’s safe, I don’t- it doesn’t matter.”

“Fuck that,” Shiro snapped. “You have people you can turn to, yanno? You have friends who would support you no matter the cost just like how you would support them. And, if you can’t bring yourself to rely on them, then you turn to me, got it?  _ You  _ come first to me no matter what.”

Ichigo opened his mouth to protest but realized there’d be no point. Besides, somewhere deep down, Ichigo felt relieved. He could be broken for once. He had arms he could run to. He had a chest to cry into. He had someone to talk to that didn’t rely on him being strong all the damn time. His friends were amazing, but they needed him at his best. Shiro already knew him at his worst, and he knew how to handle him at his worst too.

So, Ichigo closed his mouth and shut his eyes, and leaned back into Shiro’s hold. He stayed like that for another hour or so, letting tears of guilt, pain, fear, everything come out. And, once he was finally finished crying, Shiro held him for another 30 minutes until Ichigo was ready to get up.

All in all, it came to about 8:30 when Ichigo first went downstairs. He and Shiro decided that they should have their morning showers separate, lest they arouse too much suspicion. Little did Ichigo know…

Karin gave Ichigo  _ a look  _ when he sat down at the table.

Ichigo blinked. “Something the matter, Karin?”

She rolled her eyes, took a bite out of her toast, then said, "You do know my room is next to the bathroom, right? And you weren't exactly quiet."

Ichigo could hear Shiro coming down the stairs, but his partner's steps faltered.

“Oh," Ichigo replied, "You mean this morning? Yeah, I was up a bit earlier than usual and took a shower before-”

Shiro’s laughter cut off the rest of Ichigo’s sentence.

Karin shook her head.

Ichigo looked to Karin, and then to Shiro. “What?”

Shiro leaned over to Ichigo and mumbled, in English, “I don’t think she was talking about us being loud this morning, Ichigo.”

“You don’t have to speak English, Shiro,” Karin spoke up. “The whole house knows you speak Japanese after last night, unless the only word you know is ‘King’.”

Ichigo spat out his morning coffee and Shiro went stiff. Ichigo turned to Shiro and started laughing. In fact, Shiro hadn’t ever seen Ichigo laugh that hard before, and it made Shiro chuckle too.

“I-CHI-GOOOOOO!” Came the shrill cry of Isshin Kurosaki. “How could you possibly put your sisters through such impurity, my son!?”

Before Ichigo has a chance to react, Isshin was close to his face.

“I’d like to have a word with you, and ‘Shiro’.”

Any sense of humour there was to the situation drained from Ichigo’s chest. He nodded and followed his dad upstairs, Shiro following behind him.

They stopped in the hallway upstairs. Isshin glanced at Shiro, then back to Ichigo. “So, this is Zangetsu, right? Kisuke filled me in somewhat.”

Ichigo slowly nodded. “Dad, I know he’s part Hollow, but so am I-”

Isshin held up a hand and shook his head. “Listen, I don't care who your partner is, but you're 17 and you're not having sex in my house, especially with your sisters around."

Ichigo stiffened.  This was not the direction he thought the conversation was headed.

“Do we have an understanding, Ichigo? I don’t care how you identify or who you want your partner to be, you’re still my kid, and… that means I have to be your dad. I have rules, and one of them is that you’re underage and you’re not having sex in my house.”

Ichigo nodded. “I, yeah, that… that makes sense, sorry.”

Isshin’s straight face finally gave out and his goofy grin returned. He patted Ichigo on the shoulder and said, “You don’t have to apologize for growing up into a man, my boy! Now, in 45 minutes, I want you to meet me at Urahara’s Shop, alright?”

“Uh, sure?” Ichigo agreed, just before his father hopped off.

Ichigo slowly turned towards Shiro, then shrugged.

Shiro slid his arm around Ichigo and placed a kiss on his cheek. “Mm, guess I’m a bad influence on ya, eh Kingy? Makin’ ya break yer old man’s rules.”

Ichigo felt his face grow warm. “Oh, be quiet, you.” He stole a quick kiss from Shiro.

Shiro chuckled. “Guess he didn’t say anythin’ about kissing, eh?”

Ichigo hummed and kissed Shiro again, this one deeper. “No, I guess not.” And they kissed again. It was a high to Ichigo, a very beautiful high, where the world melted away and all that mattered were the small touches and the happiness they brought him. With every kiss, another worry melted off Ichigo’s mind.

Ichigo huffed out a small laugh. "I still can't believe I actually just got scolded for real, though."

Shiro laughed beside him, slipping his hand into Ichigo's as Ichigo started to head for the stairs.

As Ichigo once again sat down at the table, Karin spoke up, “I still don’t get why you tried to hide it from us, though. Ichigo, we’re you’re family, you didn’t have to come up with some foreign student story to sneak your boyfriend into the house.”

Ichigo chuckled nervously. “Yeah, uh, about that… he really is new at our school, I’ve just known him outside of school for a lot longer.” Ichigo scratched the back of his head. “And he really does need a place to stay. We hadn’t really planned on… that is, what happened last night wasn’t, yanno…”

“You didn’t plan on having sex,” Karin stated for him.

Yuzu huffed, finally speaking up, “Karin, you shouldn’t bother Ichi-nii about his sex life so much!”

Karin scoffed. “Oh yeah? At least I don’t press my ear to his door whenever he brings someone home!”

Isshin burst into the room. “What!? I don’t do that! Who told you such nonsense, Karin!?”

Ichigo groaned and sunk back into his chair.

Shiro did his best to laugh quietly, but Ichigo still shot him a soft glare.

After a minute, Ichigo slowly leaned against Shiro as he listened to his sisters ramble about bad habits. At least they weren’t talking about him anymore.

Ichigo finished his coffee and food with Shiro stealing a sip or bite every now and then. He complained about the taste each time, however… “I don’t mind the taste of coffee,” he admitted. “No sugar in it though.”

Ichigo carried his dishes to the kitchen, thanked Yuzu for the food, then he and Shiro left to go to Urahara’s.

Yuzu sniffled as she watched them disappear down the street. “It’s nice to see Ichi-nii so happy…”

“Yeah, it’s damn near insufferable,” Karin muttered, but she was secretly happy for her brother too. “He didn’t have to lie to us, though.”

Yuzu pouted. “Maybe he was worried about how we would react, or maybe he was worried that Shiro wouldn’t be able to stay with us if we knew they were together?”

Isshin smiled. “Yuzu! We should work extra hard to make sure that Shiro feels welcomed in our household! After Daddy gets back from work, we can devise a plan on how to go about ‘Operation, welcome Shiro to the family-’”

Karin whacked her dad with her spoon. “Why do you have to be so friggen weird?”


	21. Father and Son

When Ichigo arrived at Urahara's shop, he saw Isshin already there in his Shinigami form. Isshin was waiting out front, arms crossed but in a patiently-waiting sort of way, his head turned to gaze distractedly off up at the sky.

"Where's Kisuke?" Ichigo asked.

Isshin blinked and turned to his son. "He said he had one more thing to take care of before we went inside."

Ichigo nodded. He stood a few meters away from Isshin and waited. Shiro stared at Ichigo, who was staring at Isshin.

"What is it?" Isshin asked after a minute of silence.

Ichigo glanced away. "Oh, nothing, just… I guess I'm still not used to seeing you in a Shinigami uniform."

Isshin smirked. "Well, I could certainly say the same to you."

Ichigo scratched the back of his head. "I guess so…" He sighed. "It's been a while since that fight against Aizen… and Ginjo."

"Yeah. Even then, I didn't really think about you wearing Shinigami robes…" Isshin scratched his chin. "You were just my only son, who puts way too much weight on his shoulders."

As if on queue, Shiro slid his hands over Ichigo's shoulders, easing the tension he could sense was building up in his King. Ichigo hummed his appreciation before adding, "Yeah, we didn't really talk much about any of that afterwards. That was kinda my fault, though, since I ended up pushing you away when I was powerless."

Isshin shrugged. "Can't say I didn't do the same. I knew you were seeing spirits and I knew why, but I couldn't find the right way or time to explain any of it."

"And you know I don't blame you for that, and I'm not mad or anything." Ichigo felt guilt eat at him. "Still, it… doesn't bother you?"

Isshin blinked. "What doesn't?"

"Lying to Yuzu and Karin?"

Isshin frowned and said with a sigh, "I can't say I'm proud of it, lying to my family, but we each do things to keep the people closest to us safe, and to keep them from worrying."

Ichigo scowled. "I just… wish I could tell them."

Isshin nodded. "Ichigo, your power was strong even as a kid, but it was woken up by Rukia's power and when you needed it most to save your sisters. Karin has had a few moments like that, and her power is slowly waking up. Yuzu's will soon too. When that happens, I'd… I'd like your help to tell them the truth and to train them in what they need to know."

Ichigo blinked and nodded. "Of course!"

"And until then, you and I will look after them, right?"

Ichigo nodded.

Isshin turned his gaze to Shiro. "And you'll watch after my son, yeah?"

Shiro's eyes narrowed. "I won't let anything happen to him."

Isshin, who was all too aware (thanks to Kisuke) of all the times Shiro had taken over Ichigo to protect him (and had even brought him back from the dead), said with a small smirk, "Yeah, I know you'll protect him well. But you also have my permission to kick his ass when he needs it."

"Hey!"

Shiro grinned. "Oh, trust me, I've been kicking his ass for a while now."

"Oi!"

"Good."

"I didn't agree to this!"

Shiro laughed and stole a kiss from Ichigo before the orange-head turned away.

Ichigo pouted. "Great, my dad and my Zanpakuto teaming up against me, it couldn't possibly get any worse."

"So, Ichigo finally got laid, huh?"

Ichigo wanted to slap himself for jinxing it as Yoruichi appeared.

"What do you mean, I finally got laid!?"

"Oh please, Ichigo, I can tell by that way you and Zangetsu are-"

"NEVERMIND."

Yoruichi smirked. "C'mon you three, Kisuke says it's all good to go."

Ichigo grumbled but stopped himself from saying anything.  _Oh, he was plotting revenge on everyone now,_ for all the teasing and poking and just, it was so cruel, why did he have to be the target of everyone's jokes today?

They followed Yoruichi through the shop and into the backroom where the hidden entrance to the training grounds was. Ichigo blinked as Isshin started to climb down.

"Wait," Ichigo said, "are we training?"

Isshin smirked and Ichigo had the feeling that this was just not going to be his day. "Yes, so you'd better leave your body up here."

Ichigo glanced at Shiro. Then, he glanced back at Isshin only to find that he was already far down the ladder. Ichigo sighed and took his Shinigami badge off his belt. Then he pressed it against his chest. That familiar burst of power filled Ichigo as he was separated from his body and he sighed at the relief and freedom he felt.

He turned to Shiro and held out his badge.

"Oh, right…" Shiro looked down at the gigai he was currently wearing. "Finally, I get to get outta this thing. It's been itching at me all day."

Ichigo kept his laugh quiet at Shiro freed himself.

Shiro sighed as his limbs felt free at last! He grinned and wrapped his arms around Ichigo's waist. The Shinigami hummed, oh so eagerly giving in to the contact, smiling happily as their lips touched. Ichigo groaned a little as the kiss deepened, but then he slowly pulled away.

Ichigo stared at Shiro's lips, then blinked and looked up into his eyes. "What was that for?"

Shiro licked his lips. "What? I'm not allowed to kiss ya?"

"It's not that…" Ichigo shook his head. "Just… the way you hold me and the way you kiss me, it's…"

Shiro brought a hand up to run his fingers through Ichigo's hair, savouring the soft feeling between his fingers. "I can tone it down if it makes you feel uncomfortable."

"No," Ichigo said. "It's the opposite, actually. It feels like this is how everything is meant to be."

Shiro smirked. "Feeling's mutual, King."

"YOOHOO!" Kisuke called, his voice echoing out of the 'secret' entrance. "Are you two going to need a bed and an hour alone, or are you coming, Kurosaki-san~?"

Ichigo scowled and Shiro cackled.

* * *

"Sorry things took so long to get ready, Isshin!" Kisuke said, waving from the bottom of a cliff. He tapped the stone beside him. "It's been a while since this place has been cleaned up, yanno? Last time Ichigo and I fought here, there were massive craters, and if you're going to be doing battle with him at his current level, then I needed to up the protective barriers on the rocks and walls!"

Ichigo gulped and turned to Isshin. "Wait, you never said that  _we_ were fighting!"

Kisuke chuckled. "Oh? You didn't tell him?"

Isshin folded his arms again and stuck his nose in the air. "Of course, I didn't tell him! He wouldn't have come."

"Well, duh… I don't need to fight my own dad! What's the point in-?"

Shiro cleared his throat.

Ichigo clenched his jaw and his expression flattened with displeasure. Slowly, he turned to see his Zanpakuto grinning from ear to ear. Ichigo narrowed his eyes, "Don't you dare start."

"Don't make me start, then," Shiro replied.

"Whatever," Ichigo waved him off. "Seeking out battle is part of my instinct, right?"

Shiro cackled to himself.

Isshin slowly raised a brow.

Ichigo sighed and shook his head. "It's a long story."

"You say that like it's a bad thing," Shiro muttered.

"Well, it wasn't exactly a pleasant conversation at the time," Ichigo added.

"Yeah, yeah," Shiro shrugged. "I ain' sorry 'bout kicking yer ass, Ichigo."

"Fine, then I'm not sorry about stabbing you," Ichigo huffed.

The two of them shared a soft glare, and then their glares melted into a grin. They both laughed.

Isshin narrowed his eyes. "Normal boyfriends don't bicker about trying to kill each other, you know...?"

"ISSHIIIIIIIIIN!" someone bellowed.

Ichigo jumped back as a sudden burst of flames surrounded his father.

"Engetsu, no- GAH!" Isshin yelped when he was tackled to the ground. "You're going to catch me on fire- OUCH!"

Ichigo blinked. The being sitting on his father wasn't what he had expected at all. For one, it took Ichigo a moment to remind himself that his father was a Shinigami and therefore had a Zanpakuto. Then, Ichigo had to remind himself that Muramasa's effect was still lingering in the air, and therefore it should've been natural for Engetsu to materialize. And lastly, besides a Getsuga Tenshou, Ichigo had never actually seen any of his father's techniques, so the fact that Engetsu seemed to be made of ashes with flames for clothes, it just wasn't at all what Ichigo had imagined.

Glowing, embers-for-eyes, turned to look at Ichigo. "Well, well, so this is your son, huh?" Engetsu sneered. "He's weak as shit, Isshin, you've been slacking in your fatherly duties!"

Ichigo scowled. "I'm not weak!"

"Yeah, say that again," Shiro snarled.

Engetsu climbed off Isshin and took a few steps towards the Substitute Shinigami. "You're. Weak. As. Shit." He turned towards Shiro. "And so are you. I'll prove it."

Ichigo could feel rage spark in Shiro's Spiritual Pressure, and he honestly didn't blame his Zanpakuto at all for it.

* * *

Hours passed. It was clear that Engetsu had absolutely no intentions of going easy on Ichigo or his Zangetsu, and Isshin shared the same resolve as his Zanpakuto.

What the hell? Ichigo had defeated many powerful enemies in the past, so why was this battle so taxing on his Spiritual Pressure? Ichigo felt his knees shaking. They gave way and he dropped to the ground, chest heaving.

"Good," Isshin said, "you've finally used enough…"

Ichigo forced his eyes open a little wider. "Finally… used enough?"

"Reiatsu..."

Ichigo raised a brow.

Shiro wobbled and dropped near Ichigo, blood dripping from where Engetsu had managed to nick his cheek. Ichigo frowned, wanting to suggest that Shiro use their power to heal himself, but his father spoke before he could.

"Remember the last time you meditated to enter your Inner World... when you were training for the Final Getsuga Tenshou?"

Shiro growled. "Say that name again…"

"Not now, Zangetsu…" Ichigo mumbled, and then leaned against the other. Shiro blinked and brushed Ichigo's hair from his face.

Isshin continued, "You both are going to have to meditate. I can tell you're both very much alike, and you've acquired your power through training your bodies. You must train your mind too, Ichigo, just like that time before you fought Aizen."

Ichigo glanced at Shiro, who nodded.

Ichigo melted against Shiro's hands as his Zanpakuto idly drew a pattern on his scalp. "Your father is right, Ichigo… unfortunately. I hate meditation."

The Substitute Shinigami chuckled to himself. "C'mon, I'm sure it won't be so bad."

"This is how Shinigami usually obtain their Bankai," Isshin added.

Kisuke nodded, appearing between the father and his son. "It's true. We forced Ichigo's Bankai out last time, but that was because we were under the pressure of a short deadline. Now that there's time, Ichigo, you and your Zanpakuto should use it to train properly. And we made it easier for you to pass out now that most of your Spiritual pressure has been drained!"

Ichigo narrowed his eyes. "Wait, don't tell me you planned all of this, somehow?"

Kisuke kicked the ground below him. "We positioned you to fight about Sekkiseki stone, to drain you of reiatsu faster!"

Ichigo's eye twitched. He wasn't certain what he was more agitated about: the fact that they didn't have faith in him to be able to stay calm and meditate without being exhausted or the fact that they hadn't been straightforward with their intentions this entire time.

Ichigo felt Shiro move to sit behind him – they were back to back. Ichigo sighed and slowly pulled his legs into the proper position to meditate.

Isshin approached and then chuckled. "What's the matter, Zangetsu? I promise I'm not teaching Ichigo any ultimate techniques this time."

Ichigo turned to see Shiro sticking his tongue out at his old man. Ichigo snorted to himself.

"I'll have you know, bringing that up isn't exactly putting me in a relaxed state," Shiro muttered.

Beside Isshin, they heard Engetsu growl too. Isshin scratched the back of his head nervously as Engetsu spoke, "Yeah, I'm not exactly fond of you bringing up bad memories either,  _master._ "

"I'm sorry. I thought it might help Ichigo remember…"

"For the record," Shiro spat. "I didn't want to teach Ichigo shit."

"Hey!"

Shiro turned his gaze to meet Ichigo's. "Well, it was true… but that's not the point. I didn't want to teach you the technique, but you needed it to save what was important to you. The Old Man knew that too. So, we trained with you for three months. Together, he and I had an understanding, that it was what  _you_ wanted, and we couldn't go against that. After all, how could we turn down such a pretty face?"

Ichigo's awe-filled eyes quickly sharpened, and his cheeks flushed pink. "Sh-Shut up."

Shiro cackled to himself and leaned back against Ichigo once more.

"Well, with how tired you must be feeling, you should both be able to focus your attention on yourselves and drifting into your Inner World," Kisuke added. "Start with learning more about your inner resolve."

"Sure, that makes sense," Ichigo muttered. He sighed and adjusted his position once more. He did, sort of, understand – or at least he had a vague theory – about what Kisuke was getting at. He wasn't just one mind… there were three pieces to himself. Himself, Shiro, and the Old Man, and Ichigo knew that accepting all pieces of himself – just like he'd done in the Final Getsuga Tenshou training – would be a proper first step to achieving his true Bankai.

Shiro sighed and closed his eyes, imitating Ichigo's form. "King, when we get in there… the Old Man is gonna be waiting."

"I know."

"Are you ready to talk to him?"

"I think so."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whew, I'm tellin' ya, I really wanted to have some Isshin and Engetsu action in here, but the fight scenes just weren't working for me… so instead, I'm focusing on the real goal here: Ichigo needs to make peace with himself and the Old Man~
> 
> This was a really important bridge chapter, so I can hop towards the next important piece of development for our favourite Strawberry Shinigami!


	22. Offense and Defense

Ichigo was surprised to see Shiro frowning, of all things, when he finally woke up in his Inner World. He felt certain he knew why the other was upset, but he asked anyway… "Something wrong?"

Shiro immediately replaced his frown with a grin. "Ah, nothin' Ichigo, just thinkin'."

"About what?"

"It's been a while since I've been in yer Inner World."

Ichigo frowned. So,  _he had been right._ "And you're thinking you don't want to go back to it some day, right?"

Shiro blinked and spun to face his wielder. "What? No, that's not it, Ichigo." Shiro bound over to Ichigo and stopped when they were arms length apart. He stepped to the side to follow Ichigo's gaze, trying to get Ichigo's eyes to meet his. "Oi, my job is tah keep yah safe, and I can do that pretty easy in here or out there."

Ichigo found it difficult to meet Shiro's eyes. What was this sudden self-doubt he was feeling?

"King?"

With the sound of his nickname, Ichigo's eyes snapped onto Shiro's. He shivered softly, melting under the concern he could see in Shiro's eyes.

"Ichigo, are _you_  alright?"

"I was just worried, that's all, that you'd hate returning here, that you didn't want to… and that there was nothing I'd be able to do to keep you from getting forced back into my Inner World."

Shiro's fingers found Ichigo's and slowly intertwined with them. "I admit, I'll miss being able to touch you and hold you whenever I want, but I'll always be right here with yah, Ichigo, that much ain' about to just suddenly change. Besides, a little Bankai training and I'll be able to materialize next to you every now and then." Shiro grinned.

Ichigo slowly nodded. "I know you're right, I just… can't shake this feeling."

Shiro leaned in a little closer, his nose brushing slightly against Ichigo's.

Ichigo hummed, letting his eyes fall shut as their lips touched. He knew what this meant,  _Ignore the negative emotions and feel this instead._

A hand moved through Ichigo's hair and stopped at the back of his neck. Shiro's fingers played with the ends of Ichigo's hair as he leaned back, a grin on his face. "Feeling better?"

"A bit." Ichigo smirked and placed another kiss on Shiro's lips. "Even better, now."

"Oh, I see." Shiro grinned and returned Ichigo's small kisses, eventually trailing kissed down his neck.

Then, a flicker of black caught Shiro's eye.

"OI! Old Man!" Shiro shouted. "Don't run off! OI! GET BACK 'ERE!"

"Z…Zangetsu, if he doesn't want to talk, then he doesn't have to…" said a confused Ichigo, who had spun around trying to catch a glimpse of the spirit Shiro had been calling to.

Shiro growled and grumbled to himself. " _Fine._ He can be a coward afraid of  _talking_ for as long as he feels like. Doesn't matter tah me. I get ya all to myself that way."

Ichigo frowned and reached for Shiro when his hand was caught instead. "Zangetsu?"

"Let's just fight instead. May as well train while we're here. We can let loose completely, yanno? No one 'ere tah get hurt."

Ichigo's browse scrunched with confusion. "Let loose?"

Shiro cracked a smile. "Oh, c'mon now. You really think I didn't notice ya holdin' back against yer dad?"

"I… wasn't holding back," Ichigo defended. "I didn't have the power to hurt him, even if I wanted to, which… I didn't want to."

Shiro slowly nodded. "I understand." He turned to gaze at the never-ending skyscrapers once more. "If we had our Bankai, that battle might've gone differently. So… Ichigo, I'm curious, what is Bankai to you?"

"What is… Bankai to me? What do you mean?"

Shiro shrugged. "What does it mean to you, King? Is it important?"

Ichigo blinked. "Well, yeah! Of course, it's important! Bankai is…" Ichigo thought back. "Bankai is the ultimate bond between a Shinigami and their Zanpakuto. It's the ultimate form of a Zanpakuto and it takes intense training and trust between a Zanpakuto and its master to achieve it. Why are you asking me?"

Shiro dismissed the odd feeling of his face growing warm. That wasn't exactly the answer he thought Ichigo would give, but he liked that answer a lot more, and  _no,_ he absolutely was  _not_ blushing – be it from pride or anything else. He took a deep breath to recollect his thoughts before he said, "Think about Renji for a second. Why did he get his Bankai?"

"What's Renji got to do with it?"

His wielder was always so impatient. "I'm asking you  _why_ you want your Bankai. It's not enough for you or me to simply want it. Renji finished training for his Bankai in order to challenge Byakuya and to save Rukia. I doubt that he would've completed it without you inspiring him. Meanwhile, you achieved Bankai the first time from your personal vow to protect those you care about, and you sought the power you needed to follow through with that vow."

After processing the information, Ichigo smirked. "Oh, so you're saying that you need me to have some noble reason for achieving Bankai because your thirst for power just isn't going to do the job, right?"

"What!?"

Ichigo leaned a little closer to Shiro. "I'm wrong then? You mean that you  _don't_ want power?"

Shiro snorted and stepped up to Ichigo. "Big talk,  _King_. It's nice to see you relaxed enough to joke around like this." Shiro reached out and pulled Ichigo close, his grin filling the Substitute Shinigami's vision. "Of course, _I want power_. I want the both of us to become stronger."

Ichigo felt the bite of nails on his throat. When Shiro pushed his chin up, he gave in, giving Shiro more access to place his teeth on his neck too.

Shiro took a moment to taste his Shinigami, tongue moving across skin, before he continued, "I want Bankai, King. I want that power to belong to us again. I can't do it without you, though; you know that."

Ichigo's breath hitched. He slid his hands over Shiro's, squeezing them, and trying not to shudder as Shiro's breath tickled his throat.

"You want it too, King, though perhaps for different reasons than I do. At the end of the day, it doesn't matter, you and I both want power."

Ichigo pulled Shiro's hands off him. "Ugh, I swear, sometimes you're worse than the Old Man."

Shiro scoffed. "What's that supposed to mean!?"

Ichigo chuckled and shook his head. "No, I didn't mean it like that. You and him both have very roundabout ways of teaching me and telling me what you want. You want to train for Bankai? Then we'll train for Bankai. Just say it instead of teasing me and being so complicated about it."

"Aww, but Ichigo, it's no fun unless you're pouting and confused."

They both took a few steps back and drew their swords. Ichigo charged towards Shiro and their blades met with sparks. It would seem from an observer's point of view that both Ichigo and Shiro were blocking and attack simultaneously, but Ichigo noticed that he started to lag behind and Shiro got the upper hand. They went from swinging at the same time to Ichigo blocking Shiro's attacks. Shiro was on the offensive, leaving Ichigo on the defensive until Shiro released a sudden Getsuga and Ichigo blocked at the last minute. Then he skidded back and crashed against a wall.

"Damn it…" Ichigo muttered.

"Ichigo, what's the key to a good offense?"

Ichigo blinked. He hopped down from the small crater and landed on the same building as Shiro. "A good… defense?"

Shiro nodded. "And, likewise, what's the key to a good defense?"

"A good offense?"

Shiro grinned. "Ya learn quickly, Ichi. Just so you know, your defence sucks."

Ichigo scowled. "Uh, thanks?"

"Let me show you what I mean." Shiro held his hand out and a plain Zanpakuto appeared. "Here you have an ordinary Zanpakuto. It's fragile. There's nothing in it." Shiro threw it in the air. He flicked his finger and a hint of red burst towards the Zanpakuto, shattering it. "See what I mean?"

Ichigo flinched a little but nodded.

"Right, now if you put something inside the Zanpakuto, it makes it stronger. Like this." Shiro picked up another sword, holding onto it for a few seconds before throwing it into the air. He took his long blade from his back and hit the Zanpakuto. It didn't break this time but was instead sent flying through the air only to lodge itself into the side of a building.

"Do you see it now?"

Ichigo nodded. "Yeah, I know. I put my power into my Zanpakuto, and in return, you share your power with me."

Shiro tsked. "Yeah, well... It's the same for yer mask. It's also similar to how you surround yourself with your Spiritual Pressure so that you take less damage from your opponents. But from now on, you're not using your Zanpakuto or your mask outside of yer Inner World until you start respectin' them more."

Ichigo thought back to the time he was almost killed in his fight with Zaraki Kenpachi. The Old Man brought him to his Inner World where Shiro had appeared to show him how to really use his Zanpakuto. It was monstrous, but… Ichigo felt nothing but pride in the sword Shiro had been holding. Now he felt pride in Shiro.  _That's it,_  Ichigo thought,  _I'm going to be the wielder that Zangetsu deserves._

"Alright, I've seen enough…" The Old Man murmured.

Shiro smirked. "I knew you'd come around."

The Old Man nodded towards Ichigo. "It has been a while, Ichigo…"

Ichigo opened his mouth, and then snapped it shut. He turned towards Shiro, trying to read his Zanpakuto's emotions and determine from them how he should react to the Old Man. Shiro blinked, flashing towards his wielder. Ichigo grumbled and buried his face in Shiro's Shihakusho.

"You alright, Ichigo?"

After a minute, Ichigo sighed, "I want to be mad, but… I'm just not. I want to hate him, but I can't."

"It's all right, King, ya don't have to be mad. I'm not either." He rubbed Ichigo's back. "He did what he thought was best to protect you an' I did the same."

The Old Man closed his eyes. "Ichigo… do you remember when I told you that what I wanted to protect and what you wanted to protect were two very different things?"

Ichigo nodded.

"Do you remember what I wanted to protect?"

He hesitated, then Ichigo nodded again.

A sad smile appeared on the Old Man's lips. "Do you… think you can forgive me? My selfishness?"

Ichigo felt a sharp pain in his chest. It was a pain worse than guilt because Ichigo understood exactly what the Old Man was getting at. "Do you forgive me, Old Man?"

Shiro chuckled and placed a hand on Ichigo's shoulder. "Ichigo, we forgave you for  _that_  a long time ago. We were angry when you first brought up the Final Getsuga Tenshou, but the moment our sword ran you through… we felt pride."

Ichigo glanced at the Old Man, who nodded and said, "Zangetsu is correct. Accepting our blade meant accepting our pain as well as our power. It meant accepting us. And while that meant you learned the technique, it also meant that…"

"For a brief moment, the three of us were whole."

Ichigo blinked. "Whole?"

Shiro nodded. "You accepted all of your power, your heritage… Shinigami, Hollow, Human…" Shiro glanced at the Old Man.

He sighed. "And Quincy."

Ichigo felt his heart skip a beat. "So, I really am…?"

"From your mother." The Old Man slowly slid his sleeve up his arm. Strange blue markings had appeared across his skin. "What your overly-excited Zanpakuto spirit has been trying to convince me to do is teach you how to use your most powerful defensive technique. This is called Blut Vene."

Ichigo's eyes widened.

The Old Man turned to Shiro. "A demonstration?"

Shiro nodded and used his smaller sword to swing at the Old Man's arm.

Ichigo flinched, prepared to see blood fly, but nothing happened. The sword stopped on the Old Man's arm like it had hit a solid wall.

Ichigo's chin dropped. "What… was that?"

"Blut Vene," the Old Man repeated. "Your mother was excellent at it. She could summon it to protect herself without even thinking about it, like second nature. We'll train you to do the same."

Ichigo nodded gently, feeling, for a moment, the love and protection of his mother. The technique seemed fitting for him to inherit from her.

"Already activating it?" Shiro asked and shook his head. "Jeez, King, you are a fast learner."

Ichigo glanced at his skin. It was faint, but there were the same markings that had appeared on the Old Man.

"Very good, Ichigo," the Old Man praised. "Keep that feeling close to you. It'll be handy in the heat of battle."

Shiro chuckled. "Or it might be handy now… if ya don't use what we just taught ya, yer gonna die, partner."

Ichigo flinched and immediately brought out his long sword to defend from Shiro's sudden attack.

"If you can block my attacks and manage to get yer mask on, well, we'll see where we take it from there! But ya won't have time to ta even say the word 'mercy'!"


End file.
